EXEC FLIP ARPHAGE (HIATUS)
by Kami No Tsurugi Kusanagi
Summary: The prayers of the people reach the spiraling tower but are they heard? Two sisters torn from each other find themselves on opposite sides and they learn one thing. Lives are not the only thing lost in war. The land is dying... The people are dying... The only thing left is their soul... but that's no longer safe either. RSxEM! Other pairings!
1. METHOD HYMME GRANZARO SPEAR

**EXEC FLIP ARPHAGE**

**METHOD_HYMME_GRANZARO=SPEAR**

* * *

"_Who is God to create such illusions?"_

"_Who is the devil with the strength to defy this God?"_

_-The Kingdom of the Grail_

* * *

In the evening as the sun sank below the horizon, illuminating the landscape in scarlet and auburn brilliance, a song dances with the breeze. The light teasing gusts carry the pure crystal notes while frolicking with the emerald leaves of an elm tree whose trunk is laden with ivy. A young girl looks up from under silky violet hair restrained into two low-hanging pigtails, her amethyst orbs wide with wonder as the diaphanous notes chime through the air. Spellbound, she places one foot in front of her and then another, and before she can think through what she's doing, she finds herself racing through the forest, the solemn oaks, lively maple trees, and hardy alders whizzing by her as she continues her mad dash towards the song's source.

The purplenette's mad dash through the purple loosestrife and luxurious tangled locks of willow herb and comfrey startles a willow-wren from the its perch on a silver birch, and it flies off twittering into the dusky sky. The song grows louder and the notes clearer and more vibrant as she races towards the melody's source.

Rushing past an antiquated weir in the silvery-green river, the young woman comes into a clearing. A towering structure made of sea glass green crystal ascends to the heavens from the lush verdant grass, its surface an opalescent canvas of rainbow hued brilliance. Slowly, the purplenette approaches it, her eyes half-lidded and her hands held up as a blissful peace overtook her, making her delicately structured facial features radiant.

Standing right next to the incandescent structure, the purplenette can hear the faint humming of other descants and harmonies flowing towards the tower. The air buzzes with the electric tingle of energy and feeling the back of her neck prickle with the lyrical current, the young woman reaches out and gently brushes the smooth surface with a leather-gloved hand.

This tower… somehow… it was taking all the mismatched melodies and synchronizing them into this single mellifluous harmony.

A discordant scream shatters the melody and silence descends.

Startled, the young woman looks around the clearing, scrutinizing the wild growth encircling her in a perfect circle but she sees nothing that would be a cause for alarm.

A pealing _crack _resounds through the air and a violent wind buffets the clearing, rousing the purplenette's violet locks into a frenzy, making them whip the air fervidly as they rose up. With wide eyes, she throws a restless glance over her shoulder and a soft gasp escapes her as she sees herself being reflected on the faceted surface. With an apprehensive mien, she takes a wary step closer to her reflection. Her mirror image mimics her movement.

With a great deal of trepidation, she reaches out and lightly presses her hand against the gem-like surface. Her mirror image copies the movement so her hand is pressing against the purplenette's. Marveling silently to herself, the young woman looks down at her feet.

"Stupid little Lementa. Who the hell do you think you are?" A derisory voice much like the woman's own jeers cruelly.

"Wha-" The woman-Lementa yelps and her gaze shoots up to her doppelganger. The green crystal distorts ripples like the surface of the pond and her reflection is no longer a carbon copy of the young woman's. She is donning an elegant stygian black dress and her hair is done into spiky pigtails held up by two night violet bows. There is a malevolent smile on her face and her sharp violet eyes are laced with malignant glints of pure spite. Sheer horror distorts Lementa's face turning her into a misshapen, terrified ghost of who she was just moments ago.

"You are-" Lementa screams stridently but her words are drowned out by a mocking chorus of laughter from the girl in black.

_"Pervertunt! Mortuus! Si maledicit! Clamate!"_

_"A mundi sunt torta et cinere!"_

The mysterious girl chants in an arcane language. With each word, the tower throbs with a depthless black light and an icy bolt of fear lances Lementa's heart. "Stop…" She whispers and slams her fist against the crystal. The girl in black ignores her and continues to sing.

_"Clamate! Cupiditas! Mors! Morbus! Eum!"_

_"Gloria! Cupido! Invidia! Ira!"_

_"Maledictum est hominum!"_

"Stop it right now!" Lementa screeches. The girl stops singing her curses and with narrowed eyes, she glowers malignantly at Lementa. Her heart slamming against her rib cage, the young woman collapses to the ground, ashen and tremulous. A hushed silence falls across the clearing and the world is deathly still.

"Make me." The girl in black spits contemptuously.

"Please don't! V-" Lementa cries vainly.

"_Sileo mundi et succendatur!"_

A web of amethyst light splays itself across the jade-green surface of the structure, the light emanating from it rapacious. The world around Lementa trembles and a crack of hellish light splits the sky. With a resounding _crack _the towering structure flies apart, no longer a resplendent green, but an abyssal black with a nebulous red core that pulsates like a beating heart. The shockwave from the explosion throws the purplenette into an oak with concussive force, stunning her.

A tepid red dribble trickles down from her forehead into her eyes as she watches the world disintegrate into black ash through her blurring vision.

* * *

On an expanse of summer forest green intertwined with bands of liquid moon silver surrounded by natural orchards of wild cherry, crabapple, and sloe rose a formidable barrier of granite, encasing a sea of baroque stone structures and haphazardly constructed wooden shacks and vending stalls. The solemn medieval-style structures observe the cries of all of life's joy and miseries below as people moved through their daily lives.

Moving through a throng of commoners like a wraith was a snowy-haired girl with expressionless cerise eyes, donning a crass cloak made of rude brown material. Despite her crude clothing, she carries herself with a poise and grace that betrays her waifish appearance. She ghosts past a noisy carpenter shop and the ringing forge of a smithy where a master armorer is crafting crossbow bolts and spearheads. She passes the shops of cobblers, chandlers, spinners, tinkers, and glaziers. Strolling by a boutique where ladies peruse the goods, outdoing each other in displays of exotic bird plumage, mink and ermine, gold-thread, pearls and silk, a greasy-faced child clad in tattered rags streaks by her clutching two ripe apples close to his breast in his bony arms. Vehement curses spewed by the ruddy apple vendor fly after the child, but he cannot do anything as the young rapscallion races into the twisting bends of the alleyways, a giddy childish laughter bubbling from his lips.

The snowy-haired woman watches the child rush by her with a detached interest. _How petty…_ She thinks, but she has a far more important task than dealing with thieving ragamuffins. She is careful to keep her head down, but still, the people inadvertently pull away from her as she passes by. They sense something different about the snow-haired woman and are prudent enough to keep their distance.

* * *

In the town square, the chapel-an incongruous building of elegant obsidian pinnacles and sculptured saints, overlook the whispering mass of people who have gathered together to listen to a young woman's ramblings. Standing on an elevated block of stone in front of an adroitly carved marble fountain where a Patrician-style naiad spews water from her cupped hands, is a svelte silver-haired woman with nine shimmering fox tails and ruby eyes lending her an otherworldly appearance. She dons a dress of ebon and cream silk with gold filigree embroidered on the dress, and a mantle of sable fur is slung over her shoulder. Flanking both sides of her are two figures. One is a young man with white hair tinged a pale lavender and mismatched eyes that are differing shades of violet giving him a rakish yet somewhat crazed visage, he is wearing narrow black pants and a royal-purple jacket with fur trimming. The other figure is a busty elven woman with jade eyes wearing a flouncy dress made of lime-green cotton and her silken blonde hair is drawn back into a jaunty ponytail with two black ribbons spiraling around it.

The snowy-haired woman smirks darkly as she enters the square and looks up at the three figures in front of the fountain. She has found her target.

_Eliminate the nuisance Proto._

Those were Queen's exact words to her.

Savoring her victory, Proto slowly weaves her way through the crowd with a maniacal smile.

"People!" The silver-haired woman- known to others as Eun cries. The murmuring of the crowd stops and the only sound left reverberating through the air is the knell of the cast-iron church bells as the magnificent chapel glares down disapprovingly at the crowd.

"I have heard your cries and I have known of your pain." Eun states, her rich voice carrying throughout the town square and reaching everyone. "I have known of the massacre at the village of Decir. I know of the widow whose husband's soul was taken by the U virus leaving her with nine children to care for. I also know of how the tower of El is losing its power and that the world is slowly sickening" At those words, a chorale of disbelieving cries erupted from the crowd. With a brittle stare, Eun silences them. "Surely you have seen how pitiful the fishermen's harvest is? Just three years ago their sturdy hemp nets used to be ripping apart from the sheer weight of all the trout they were reeling in! Now the haul is pitiful, at times barely any fish are trapped and half of those trapped are tainted and unsafe to eat! The water is alkaline! The crops withering in the fields!" Eun exclaims ardently and gesticulates towards the murmuring crowd. "Can any of the elders out there remember how bountiful and rich the land once was?" The older iron-visaged members of the gathering dip their heads and mutter darkly to each other. This unfamiliar and unearthly woman had a valid point.

"Now I must ask the question. What is being done to solve the problem?" She queries and narrows her sharp eyes as if daring someone to challenge her. A sibilant mist of hissing whispers erupts from the crowd but nobody challenges her.

"I notice nobody is rebuking my remark and that is precisely my point!" Eun shouts and holds her hands out to the heavens. "The Magistratum has done nothing! They condemn the people who do try to do something and sit back as we suffer!" Several people in the crowd nod approvingly at Eun's words and around Proto, a couple whispered words of agreement were heard. Narrowing her eyes, Proto spits angrily at the ground and hastens her walk. This brazen twit has twittered enough!

The blonde elf's ears twitch and sensing something amiss, she scans the crowd with a grave expression. Scrutinizing the indistinct blur of faces, she spots the cat among the pigeons.

"Milady." She whispers in Eun's ear and tentatively taps the silverette on the shoulder. With a peeved expression, Eun's gaze shoots towards the elf. "What Rena?" She hisses lowly. Rena grimaces and points out Proto, whose movements are too lissome and sure to let her blend in effectively with the crowd. Eun clenches her teeth together in a fearsome scowl and whips her gaze to her right where the male is standing, looking interested in the proceedings for the first time.

"Add!" She growls and clamps her hand on his shoulder. "Yeah?" He drawls indolently and cocks his head to the left, the jagged purple line marring the left side of his face glistening in the sunlight. "Take care of her!" Eun snaps and jabs fervidly at the approaching form of the white-haired woman. Add nods lazily and holds up his right hand which is clothed in black leather, a throbbing amethyst orbs titivates the back of his hand and around it one can smell a faint but acrid whiff of ozone.

Seeing Add's action, Proto realizes that the three are aware of her presence. She whisks her tattered cloak of her, revealing an ornate battle suit of vivid fuchsia and holds her own hand up a beautiful rose quartz cabochon adorning the back of her pastel wristband.

"_Mauris eu elit! Codex Iuris Canonici: VIDEO HARMONICIS."_

Proto sings and is enveloped in a writhing halo of cherry-blossom light. Smirking, Add chants his own verse.

"_Codex Iuris Canonici: nigra animae CHORUS eu."_

Crackling tendrils of purple electricity arc out of the amethyst on Add's hand, illuminating his pallid skin in a ghostly glow. With a humorless smile, he snaps his hand summoning eight blades of stygian black el alloy. Proto, wanting the initiative makes the first strike.

"_Nimii-rubro caelum angelos milites jacula sagittarii ad iudicium!"_

"_Lacrimas in oculis eorum, et vita eorum permaneat valeant ad durus fragilis vox!"_

"_Qui enim non est sine vita est ut chaos!"_

A machine gun materializes in her hands, alien and cruel. Proto scowls cantankerously as she squeezes the trigger, aiming at Eun. A flurry of blood-red bullets erupts from the muzzle but the attack is intercepted by Add who shoots a sputtering orb of mauve electricity. "If you'd be so kind." He jeers and leaps into the alarmed crowd, the people are tripping over themselves to escape the town square and in the pandemonium Add's taunt is swept away with the startled shrieks.

"_Nullo Deus, qui operatur adeo durum est, inclinet et tinkers fatis."_

"_Laetus et obligare ridiculi ejus, sed dic 'non!'"_

"_Quia leges et mundi fata ..."_

"_Et decernere!" _

He rushes towards Proto in a blur of movement and shoots a rapid-fire series of electric bolts at her before teleporting behind her in a flash and conjuring a spinning circle of violet energy from which he shoots a large sphere of electricity. With inhuman speed, she dodges Add's assault and retaliates by lobbing several stormy grey spears at him.

"_Penitenziagite!"_

Stunned by the ferocity of Proto's relentless blitz, Add is taken off-guard, allowing the white-haired assassin to send him flying with a well-placed blow from a rocket launcher Proto summoned.

"_Vaginae arch-angelo caeli aspicit gladio scientes numquam redire"_

"You blithering idiot!" Eun snarls as the back of Add's head cracks against the stone block with stunning force and he slumps to the ground unconscious, ruby blood trickling from the back of his head and staining the lavender-tinged fur of his coat, red. "Rena!" Eun barks and pulls out a delicate black hairpin with gold and silver fox tails welded onto the end of it. Alarmed, Rena looks at Eun with eyes wide. "Yes?" She enquires breathlessly and leaps to the side to avoid a shivery orb of aquamarine blue energy lobbed her way.

"Take Add and get out of here, I'll deal with this bitch on my own." The silverette snarls and holds the hairpin in the palm of her hand.

"_Miseri petunt in inferno quia maledictus deos eorum."_

The hairpin glows with a lemon-gold brilliance and elongates into a jet-black spear with an ornamental but still lethal spear head. "Are you sure?" Rena breathes. Eun snorts and rolls her eyes. "I'm sure dammit!" She snarls and hefts her spear into a combative stance, giving Proto an acidic glare. Rena nods and leaps off the stone square, slinging the unconscious Add over her shoulder.

"Just where do you think you're going?" Proto shouts wrathfully and summons a machine gun. Several swirling portals of sky-blue energy materialize in the sky, spitting out an evanescent shower of cobalt blue sparks.

"_Anima vestra ad maius bonum. Damnatio alis."_

"_Nutu propheta exclamat fletus ob causam? Quam ob causam?" _

"_Aut rogo combustum, usque adeo nihil est, et percussit eam in Hierusalem rursumque tintinnabulum aliud sollemni."_

"_Feret haec anima sicut pacis reformacionem damnatur."_

The portals spit out a barrage of achromatic spears, decimating the town square in flashes of blinding light and setting fire to swaths of green grass dappled with patches of yellow-brown. With a startled cry, Rena is blasted off her feet and is thrown forward, her head smashing into the grass, which is unfortunately for her, not nearly as soft as it looks.

With a look that screams murder, Proto snaps her fingers and summons a deadly array of machinery- plasma disc launchers, rocket-launchers, heavy-duty artillery, it is all there. Sneering malignantly, Proto lifts up her machine gun and aims it at Rena.

"Just what the hell do you think you're doing?" Eun cries indignantly and raises a hand towards the sky.

"_Si maledicit! Si maledicit! Confusi sunt et in maledictionem! Si maledicit! Si maledicit!"_

"_Sed solum ex hoc carcere inferni latere me virtus diaboli."_

"_Ad exprobrandum enim manu Dei sum?"_

"_Amissa spe et cum animus non sum Lux Clamo irata."_

"_Si maledicit! Si maledicit! Confusi sunt et in maledictionem! Si maledicit! Si maledicit!__"_

A golden magic circle traces itself in the air above Eun's outstretched palm and from it, several ebon chains erupt intercrossing with each other and forming a cage which restrains a throbbing crux of citron-colored energy. With a vehement curse, Eun hurls it at Proto who is about to squeeze the trigger and gun Rena down. The chains restraining the energy burst from the impact, allowing the ruinous energy to erupt and a forceful shockwave blasts Proto into a fruit-vendor's stall.

"What are you doing woman?!" Eun bellows at the dazed Rena. "Move!" She shrieks as Proto staggers out of the rubble of the vendor's stall, splattered in melon, berries, and apples. Wiping the mushed black currants off her forehead, Proto's eyes narrow themselves into little slits and the assassin shoot scalding mental daggers at Eun. Rena shoots a worried glance at the silverette but she nods and scrambles madly to grab Add, slinging him over her shoulder with wild abandon she dashes away from the town square and disappears down an alleyway.

With an ugly smile, Eun diverts her attention back to a livid Proto, assured that her two comrades escaped to safety.

"Shall we dance?"

* * *

Half-tripping under the weight of Add, Rena streaks through the dank alley, her glossy tresses streaming out behind her. Her face bruised and scraped, and her heart pounding frantically in her chest, she is an alarming sight for anybody that would happen to see her as she hurtled out of the alley and collapsed to the ground, sending Add flying and having his limp form smash into a white wicker table that sat outside a spiffy little café with a small garden of butterfly bushes and bonsai trees decorating the front in a crescent moon pattern. Mercifully, the café front is deserted save for two people, who most fortunately happen to be friendly to Eun, Rena, and Add, as they happen to be members of the rebellion as well.

One of the two is a young man with unkempt scarlet hair that is tainted with a patch of black and sharp scarlet eyes. He is donning a black outfit and silver and cerise armor with a sword motif and he carries an air of nonchalant superciliousness. His companion is a young woman with vivid violet hair done into spiky pigtails by two royal purple bows and raffish amethyst eyes. She is clad in a scanty two piece of differing shades of violet ranging from mauve to sunset purple. Previously, the two were perched at a table with two steaming cups of caramel macchiato in front of them and arguing over a trivial matter. Upon seeing the elf and Add, they abruptly stopped their incessant arguing and rushed over to where Rena was sprawled out, breathing hard.

"Rena!"

* * *

**That concludes the first chapter of the EXEC FLIP ARPHAGE project! I hope I didn't disappoint and I hope this was good enough to avoid being kicked in the behind. *Cough* Rosamanelle *Cough* If you want to know where the title came from, it is named after the epic and beautiful song "Exec_ Flip_ Arphage_" from the Ar Tonelico song track. Actually, I highly recommend checking out the Ar Tonelico song track as it is so beautiful, epic, and inspiring. A couple of my personal recommendations would be Exec_ Harmonious, Exec_ Chronicle Key, Exec_ Cosmoflip, Exec_ With_ Metalfalica, Exec_ Sphilia, and I'm going to cut myself off so I can get back on topic.**

**I really do think this chapter is some of my highest caliber writing yet, and I'm hoping that I can continue this quality. I had edited this chapter twice and I'm pretty sure it's mistake-free but sometimes FF can do weird things when I'm uploading. One thing is don't ask me why Ara is called Eun, I think you can figure that out. Another thing is that don't ask me why IS and VP are here, yes this will be an RS x EM FF but I cannot resist the allure of IS x VP… I swear I'm addicted to that pairing. I do have to say I believe this chapter was very engaging for a first chapter. A fight, an omen, and quite a few cast members introduced. This songs sung by the characters are also google translated into Latin if you feel like figuring them out. Everything sounds prettier in a dead language XD. The fight scene was so tricky to write, being able to keep the detail without sacrificing the action is next to impossible XP Another problem is that writing everything in the neurotic detail I do makes everything longer which slows the story. So, I kind of put in a weird timeline for this story so I could have some action. We will be jumping back in time next chapter so be warned! OxO**

**A final piece of news before I depart is that an authoress named Alice Neko who uploads stories that her friend has written has offered to continue Elemental Aria so that might not be dead either! :D The next update from me shall be a chapter of Yami No Tsurugi! **


	2. EXEC Chronicle Key

**EXEC FLIP ARPHAGE**

**EXEC_ Chronicle Key**

* * *

"_Now it is the world that is haunted."_

"_That is as it always was."_

_-The Kingdom of the Grail_

* * *

_Four Weeks Prior…_

* * *

In the centermost section of the city where lavish mansions lined the immaculately cleaned streets and people clad in profligate outfits of silk, satin, velvet, ermine and other luxury materials conversed merrily with each other, the aroma of freshly baked pastries mingled with the heady notes of citrus, jasmine, rose, cinnamon and peppermint, musk plant and lavender. The notes of the wire-strung mandolin throbbed through the air as street musicians serenaded the pedestrians as they cavorted around the streets, spending prodigious amounts of money on their own vanity or scheming and debating heartily with other like-minded people.

But not today…

Avaricious flames consumed extravagant mansions and billowing towers of asphyxiating black smoke descended upon the streets, the bitter stench noxious and suffocating. The flames dance gleefully as they consume more than their fill, illuminating the streets in a blood orange patina that casted everything in a demonic light. Piercing screams broke through the crackling roar of the flames as the aristocratic denizens of the inner city evacuated.

Standing in the streets, surveying the carnage in the sweltering heat as glowing embers rain from the sky like scalding snow were three figures-Rena, Add, and the scarlet-haired Infi. Rena winces as a hot wind blew through the streets and the tiled roof of the apothecary gave way, sending a spray of golden sparks into the air as the flames devour the building's innards, releasing pungent fumes that make the sensitive elf gag. "I-I… I think –cough- I think we did… -cough- did enough." She wheezed as she places a lime-clothed arm over her mouth in a vain attempt to filter each breath she took of the miasmic air. Infi stares off into the flames, his finely-angled face oddly blank as his crimson eyes took in the destruction around him. The flames around him send a warm wind that gently sways the band of hair that flows down to the small of his back and jangles the ruby-red and winter morning-steel sword ornaments that hang from his claret leather belt.

"Yeah…" He trails absentmindedly and diverts his attention back to the other two. "Yeah…" He repeats distractedly to himself and surveys the burning wreckage with a faraway visage. "We already did what Eun asked of us…" He sighs and shakes his head. Add smirks indolently, crossing his arms and cocking his head to the right as he does so. "Where is Eun anyway? Shouldn't she be out here helping us?" Infi adds and purses his lips into a thin line, scratching behind his left ear where a silver sword earring dangled.

Add rolls his eyes and gives Infi a flippant shrug of his shoulders. "She's off taking care of some personal matters… something at home." He replies airily and looks at Rena with a bored countenance. "You done hacking there? Because I'm about to start up the teleportation circle and we're leaving with or without you."

Rena nods hastily and walks over to where Add and Infi are standing, coughing wildly into her sleeves as the piquant air chokes her. "Sounds –cough- fine with –cough- me." She gags. Add flips his head in acknowledgement of Rena's statement and he holds up his right hand, the amethyst cabochon flickering with arcane power.

_"Alio mundo alio loco, alio tempore."_

_"Quod flectit et laeditur, et in quod reliquit, quia non cadit a pravorum visus."_

_"Confirmare Aliena mihi opus esse ..."_

In a rapid-fire sequence, a series of lavender pinpricks form a circle and they start to dance around wildly, intersecting and intercrossing with each other, forming a glowing purple magic circle. Add gestures to the circle before jumping through it and disappearing in a flash of luminescent mauve light. Rena and Infi leap in right after Add and the circle dissipates in a stream of light…

Just as a white-haired woman with snowy-white hair and donning a fuchsia and pastel-pink battle suit enters the area where the three were once standing.

_You won't escape next time!_

* * *

Outside the city, in an affluent area where nobly borne folk who preferred to live outside the general pandemonium of the metropolis existed a vast plain of flawless emerald with gardens and orchards of orange, citron, and jessamine. Nestled amidst the fragrant groves was a small villa erected in a Grecian style. Surrounding the stately architecture was a kempt garden of tea-roses, cherry blossoms, and red maples. In front of the house was an austere fountain hewn from smooth granite where water arced from the center and splashed back into the crystal pool, the lucid tinkering sound ringing throughout the front yard as a gentle breeze carries a couple of pink cherry blossom petals off the tree and onto the ground. In the house, amongst pillars of marble and gilded chandeliers of rainbow crystal, a very peeved Aren was telling off his younger sister.

"I don't know what's getting into you lately Ara Haan! You come home on all strange hours of the night without even so much as an explanation as to what mischief you've been causing!" Aren's voice, rich with his lilting eastern accent resounds throughout the gathering room. Ara- a young woman with silken sable tresses, seraphic amber eyes, and porcelain skin much like her brother's, disconcertedly shifts around on the creamy-white leather couch and gives Aren a disparaging look. "Nii-san…" She protests sullenly but an acerbic glare from her older brother silences her.

"Don't Nii-san me Ara… I am not in the mood." Aren snaps and sets his mouth into a hard line. Ara snorts indignantly and sticks her nose up in the air with a mien of affronted dignity. "I am a grown woman Nii-san." She replies haughtily and adjusts the gold and silver hairpin that adorns her tresses. A derisive snort escapes from Aren and he shakes his head.

"Then start acting like it." He retorts in an icy tenor.

That is the final straw for Ara, who up until a year ago was used to being able to do whatever she fancied, as her vain and self-serving mother did not care what her daughter did so long as it kept her daughter out of her hair. "You have no right to come barging in here and bossing me around! For the past twelve years you were living with father in Fahrmann!" She hollers and stands up from her perch on the couch. "You cannot just come in here and start acting like head of the household when you were off having a grand time in Isshun! I can't believe you even have the audacity to do such a thing!" The ebonette screams and slams her foot against the marble tiling of the floor. Aren recoils as he had been stung before regaining his composure. Hardening his expression, he points a finger in the direction of the grand staircase.

"Get out." He says in a deathly whisper.

"What?!" Ara yelps indignantly and crosses her arms.

"GET. OUT. GO TO YOUR ROOM OR SOMETHING!" Aren bellows vehemently and gives Ara a scathing look that could melt steel. Ara was not a cowardly person, in fact she was considered by many to be as bold and confident of a person that one could hope to meet and her brother with his slim frame and gentle expression was not frightening by any stretch of the imagination, but there was a hardened fury in Aren's eyes that chilled Ara to the bone and reluctantly, she withdraws from the argument and storms up the stairs after an embittered "Yes _Nii-san_" laced with a resentful acrimony.

An exasperated sigh escapes Aren as he collapses on the couch and slumps down, a world-weary expression on his face. He _despised _fighting with his younger sister. He viewed it as an inane activity that only served to sour already strained relations with Ara. He didn't even want to be in Rurensia, with its glacial winters and stifling summers that rang with the ceaseless buzzing of mosquitos. If it wasn't for Ara, he wouldn't even of deigned to move from the sunny, picturesque lands of Fahrmann- home of the masters and one of the most pleasant and prosperous lands in all of Elrios. It would serve his mother right if she went broke and had to live her life out in tattered rags and scrounging the dumpsters for food. That damned woman was a leech who didn't do a day's worth of honest work in her life and heaven forbid if she should've taken an interest in her own children! Why the only reason she fought for Ara during the nasty custody battle that ensued as a result of the divorce was to spite her husband-their father, who finally decided he had had enough with his wife's ignominious infidelity and gold-digging antics.

The Haan siblings had been torn apart with an entire continent between them- Aren went with his father to his homeland of Fahrmann and Ara remained in Rurensia where her mother was born and raised.

The lucid chiming of the doorbell rings and Aren's dismal train of thought is derailed. With a dejected sigh, Aren pushes himself off the couch and trudges over to open the heavy set of mahogany doors himself.

A sylphlike woman with a delicate tiara that adorned her silver hair which was done into adroitly braided buns that adorned each side of her head and her incisive amber eyes were cold and arrogant stands outside on the front step. With a faint smile devoid of any humor or warmth she looks down on Aren giving him a haughty expression. The silverette is richly caparisoned in a white silk dress accented with satin bands of rose-blossom pink and on her neck is a golden chocker and her delicate arms are bedecked with glittering bangles. Flanking her on one side was a man wearing a white military suit and a white helmet with an onyx visor that reflected Aren's face, on the woman's other side was a female dressed in a pastel pink and charcoal grey maid uniform with a snow-white dickey and pristine white accents. However the silverette carries herself with such a nonchalant hauteur that the sight of her two bodyguards did little to enhance her authoritative air.

"Oh my…" Aren says with a note of sardonicism in his voice and a grimace on his face. "I'm honored that the great Queen of Rurensia Eve-sama would deign to visit a lowly foreign noble like me." He adds, the astringent tenor all too audible to the silverette, but she chooses to ignore the ebon-haired male's derisory tone of voice. "Would you care to let the 'great Queen of Rurensia' in Aren?" She snips curtly and sticks her nose up in the air. Aren clenches his teeth together and lets out a soft hiss, but he grudgingly lets Eve in.

"Would you care for tea?" Aren queries crisply and leads Eve and her two bodyguards to the gathering room. Eve shook her head as she sat down primly on the couch. "I am fine thank you." She responds in a stilted manner. Aren bit his bottom lip to keep the annoyance he felt off his face. With a critical eye, Eve scrutinizes the insouciant eastern garb Aren was wearing- a stark white robe edged in mandarin with a wide sash belted around the waist, securing the attire into one piece. "Shouldn't you be dressed for work? You have to leave in an hour or so." She inquires in the same brittle and condescending tone.

Aren deadpans, and exerting a great deal of self-control, he replies to Eve in a staid voice. "I am fully aware of my duties, however… why are you here? You are not the type to make social calls." His last nine words were laden with skepticism and upon hearing it, Eve lets out a forced laugh.

"Very smart… I'm relieved to see you aren't too obtuse."

Aren bites his tongue and forces his face into an ugly smile. "Glad to hear it."

With a wistful sigh, Eve rests her elbows on her thighs and cups her chin with her right hand. "Please do sit down." She orders in a dangerously saccharine voice and gestures at the obsidian-colored couch that sat across from its counterpart, a glass-topped coffee table dividing the space between the two. With a great deal of reluctance, Aren obliges and sits across from the silverette, his posture tense and uncomfortable.

"I wanted to ask you something…" Eve trails airily and wraps a loose lock of silver that dangled from her side bun around her pointer finger. Aren snorts cantankerously. "Of course. Spit it out." He retorts tartly. "Hmph! How rude!" Eve snaps and crosses her arms, quite ruffled at Aren's terse conduct. "I don't like wasting my times on formalities and cups of tea with people who clearly think lowly of me. I tend not to fancy hanging out with such people as I believe them to be utterly toxic and detrimental to good health, longevity, and a happy existence on this sucky plane of existence christened 'Elrios'." He replies dryly and leans back against the couch, exhibiting appalling conduct in front of Royalty.

Eve presses her lips into a thin line. "Very well. I can respect that." She says with a brief nod of her head. "Can you tell me what you learned about soul properties while in Fahrmann?" Seeing Aren's startled expression, she adds in a disdainful tone, "Don't even think of attempting to fool me or claim ignorance. I know full well that you learned something about souls back in your father's birthplace." Aren shoots a disconcerted glance down at his slipper-clad feet before looking up at Eve and seeing himself reflected in the lapis lazuli that adorns her forehead. "Well… I didn't learn much…" He murmurs softly and looks to the side. Eve lets out a listless sigh," Please do tell me what you do know." She orders testily.

"Well… it's tricky to say but souls have a unique property to them not at all dissimilar to the tower of El and the harmonic stones that come from it. They exude a wavelength that can manipulate energy, for example, souls of pure and innocent people can purify dark energy but on the flip side, wicked souls can corrupt consecrated energy. That's really all I know." Aren explains, adjoining the last five words with a guarded expression. Eve nods her head with a complacent expression. "Ah… I thought as much, thank you for confirming."

"What are you going to do?"

Eve, who was had stood up from the couch froze and she cocks her head to the side, not quite understanding as to what Aren meant. "What do you mean?" She enquires and motions for her two bodyguards to stand up. "Why did you need that information confirmed?" Aren queries, a hard edge creeping into his question. The silverette shakes her head and motions for Aren to be silent. "That is none of your concern. I have no reason to share such classified information with you." She peremptorily replies and leaves with her two bodyguards in tow.

Aren watches her depart with a great deal of misgivings.

_She's up to something… I don't know what… but this sickening gut feeling I have… it can't augur for anything pleasant._

* * *

In a clearing surrounded by lush wild-life, a towering structure made of sea-green crystal ascended from the verdant grass. The golden rays of the setting sun danced on the faceted surface, coating the glassy surface in a shimmery citrus sheen. All is still save for a gentle breeze that rustles the leaves of the assorted trees, the foliage rubbing against each other and whispering their ancient secrets. A crack of stygian black light ruptures the jade-green surface of the crystal and several smaller fissures branches out from the crack of abyssal power, entangling the tower in a web of anomalous runic filaments.

The air in front of the tower shimmers and distorts with a honey-hued curtain of gauzy energy, and stepping out from behind the curtain is Aren- now donning an elaborate eastern style robe that was a night-sky black with burnished gold filigree threaded on the billowing sleeves and the hem of the robe. His longish ebon hair was secured by a rubber band into a ponytail and then turned up and secured against the back of his head with a gilded hairclip.

His visage is solemn as he looks up at the tower and deliberately approaches it with his gloved left hand stretched out. Brushing his hand against the writhing surface of the tower, he takes a deep breath and closes his eyes.

"_Zain gain yin'et xiaora, womet tilatio shaon zhiut nios Wo mea xinimus heet linima." _

"_Wo mea mingliux heet shengvita."_

"_Quccipe zheoc limunus womet geido zhiut nios heet jimento gain ziox womet gaotiovit nios."_

"_Zain heet hei'nox shain gain meiyou yanacis ridie, qoccipe gain shentificetur suiesta de mingliux womet tilatio zhiut nios."_

"_Tonper gain fenra tauod jialuntus shesit fuwei aspera."_

"_Tonper gain tenglor tauod jialuntus shesit xinwei consolatoria."_

"_Tonper gain lengus tauod jialuntus shesit bian calefacientem."_

"_Tonper gain yacrimae tauod jialuntus shesit guanclarum."_

"_Tonper gain beilor tauod jialuntus shesit huanledium."_

"_Tonper gain diyu infernales relor tauod jialuntus shesit lengjiro."_

"_Tonper gain shengvita tauod jialuntus shesit nin duus zhichilium."_

"_Zheoc shentificetur pianmen de mingliux womet tilatio duiad nios shiest wo mea ruanbiles linima."_

"_Zheoc shiest ai shanmor dencernae de xipero shain gain renvium qurva lumita de gain bei'stis shengvita."_

"_Zheoc, suomnis womet youbus zhiut tilatio nios."_

"_Wo mea xinimus."_

"_Wo mea linima."_

"_Wo mea mingliux."_

"_Wo mea shengvita."_

"_Shuimnus zain hepacem, Womet shangam tongum nios nianscens hailius."_

"_Wo mea qin'aimi xiang seraphicus tianli nios yount buec duantum." _

"_Renstinere gain hei'nebrarum heet gain tailis jialo shargere."_

"_Qirtutes fari yimnes ridie bienon nios kande?"_

As the peaceful lyrics floats through the air, the nether energy starts to fade and reluctantly, it begins to rescind back into the stygian power it came from. With a soft sigh, Aren ceases his singing and as he does, the malevolent energy regains strength and starts to trickle out from the crevice. With a stoic expression, Aren repeats the lullaby.

"_Zain gain yin'et xiaora, womet tilatio shaon zhiut nios Wo mea xinimus heet linima..." _

He continues to sing as the sun sets below the horizon in a vivid canvas of warm colors and the waning crescent rises, glowing milk-white against the star-studded navy blue sea of the sky. Lulled by the soothing melody, the rift reclaims its powers and closes before fading back into the glassy green crystal of the tower.

* * *

_Three days later_

* * *

A resonant chiming sound jangles from the organs of the Cathedral as the elegant iron hands of the clock struck the Roman numeral three. The flames dancing on the wax candles of the candelabra shudder as an unwelcome wind blows into the hallowed building. A young man with frigid shatter-glass blue eyes enters the sanctuary, closing the heavy mahogany doors behind him with a dull _thwoom_. He is a svelte figure with flawless skin that is almost as pallid as the formal aquamarine-trimmed uniform he is wearing and his russet-tipped blonde hair is haphazardly spiked. The elderly priest looks up from the leather-bound tome he was poring over and he regards the male with minimal interest. He was well acquainted with the young man- Chung, as he often came to this church to pray.

"Hello young one." The aging ecclesiastic calls out warmly to Chung, who returns the greeting with a thin smile and a terse nod of his head. "Good day to you Father." He replies crispy and walks up to the dais where a luminescent stone was propped up on a gilded pedestal that was inscribed with ancient runes belonging to the sacred Ancient Language. The fierce light of the noon sun streams through the arched stained glass windows, throwing lurid shards of variegated color across the cavernous room and makes the sizeable El shard twinkle with a myriad assortment of opalescent pastel tints.

With a somber expression, Chung withdraws a silver crucifix from his coat pocket and he gingerly clasps it in between his hands in prayer. Kneeling down in front of the shrine, he closes his eyes and recites a prayer, a simple action that he had to do all too often in the current span of his life.

"I often doubt whether or not you exist El Lady, but I hope that you can hear me if you do. Throughout my life I often had to kill for the greater good of the Magistratum and now I am asking for you to purify and bless my tainted soul as I take up arms and go forward to champion the Queen so your glorious vision of harmony and unity can be fulfilled… So do I have your blessing?" He murmurs under his breath.

Silence descends and Chung's eyelids flutter open, revealing his cerulean orbs. With a despondent sigh, the young man looks up at the glimmering El shard and he stands up, tucking the crucifix into his pocket as he did so. Casting a black look at the holy stone, Chung turns away and walks down the aisle way, mentally counting the velvet-cushioned pews as he did so.

"The El Lady gives you her blessing!" The elder calls after Chung. The young man pauses for a brief moment before turning his head around to face the ecclesiastic. "Thank you Father." He responds with a faint smile and leaves the Cathedral.

_El Lady… pfft… yeah right… She's just a myth created by the Magistratum who I'm bound to and a figurehead to reinforce the Queen's authority!_

* * *

_Four Days Later_

* * *

The brunet branches of the maples and oaks were vibrant with their emerald leaves and a wood thrush trills loudly from the selvedges of the trees as a young woman with violet tresses and amethyst eyes sings softly to herself while she intertwines the green stems of the foxglove into a chaplet.

"_On a hill in a village far, far away was a little boy and a little girl."_

"_Under the shady branches of a jubilant tree, they sing the simplest melody known to thee."_

"_Tra la la la la la…"_

"_That is a simple melody known to all."_

"_Tra la la la la…"_

"_The little bird trills from his perch on an old house's window sill."_

With a resolute expression, she finishes knotting the chaplet and she places it on her head, the dusty lavender of the thimble-shaped flowers blending into her hair. "I hope Anne has something good for dinner." She muses to herself and looks up at eggshell blue sky as puffy daubs of white cotton sail peacefully through the air and a languid breeze rustles the lacy fabric of her sleeveless white summer dress.

Anne is the young woman- Lementa's and her twin sister- Voidia's guardian. Both of them were entrusted to the former nun's care as their mother stumbled to her doorsteps in labor, and died shortly before she could breathe the name of the other twin. Though Voidia was named Aisha as their mother wished, the mother died before Lementa could be christened and that was how both of them wound up with the same first name. Once they were old enough to be aware of their identical namesake, the twins had fashioned differing middle names to avoid confusion. It was bad enough to look alike, but to have the same name was the final straw for the rather eccentric pair.

It was quite grating to be so alike. Yes, Lementa loved her older twin sister but sometimes she wished that Voidia didn't look so similar to her. People mixed them up all the time and the galling part was that they didn't dress or act alike at all. Voidia was more of the aggressive, outgoing type with a wicked sense of humor and a penchant for dark colors and Goth Punk attire. Lementa on the other hand was a serious, reserved, mildly awkward young woman who wore soothing pastels and enjoyed secluding herself from other people where she could reflect and sing in private. The only thing the two had in common personality-wise was the fact they were very precocious; however Lementa demonstrated that far more often than her elder twin, who had the rather unfortunate tendency to speak without thinking and preferred observing (and occasionally partaking of) the daily mayhem of life to studying in a secluded place.

In a classic sisterly fashion, Voidia tended to tease her sister about her bookish tendencies and though Lementa knew she meant no malice, it was rather irritating and quite distracting so Lementa often explored the expansive property Anne possessed and the knoll she was hiding out on was her latest spot. There was something special about it that put Lementa at ease. Here among the mauve asters and the wild jonquils that burned brightly on the grassy verges, she feels peaceful and philosophical. This place was unknown to her sister who preferred to traipse around the narrow, winding streets of the village of Decir and use her charms to score free soda floats, which she drank as she wandered around and observed the people, making satirical remarks about them over dinner to Anne and Lementa.

Such antics were childish and frivolous in Lementa's mind, but perhaps, she reflected, most people were rather puerile and Voidia's behavior was just a reflection of one of humanity's greatest crimes- hypocrisy, you criticize one thing but ironically, you're guilty of it as well. It was much more productive in the purplenette's mindset to spend time with yourself and a good book. Free from the asinine ramblings of others, one could think… and great things have happened because a person took time to isolate themselves and think.

Yes… if people just took some time and actually thought, then there would be a great deal less problems in the world!

While the purplenette reflected quietly to herself, the clangor of bells whispered across the valley. Roused from her contemplative reverie, Lementa sat up and looked around before shaking her head and lying back down. It was not Sunday so the liquid ringing of the chapel bells would not be announcing a service… perhaps someone had died. Everything was still. The gently sloping hills of the valley gleamed serenely and the sharp smell of wild mint was placating and invited the purplenette to take a light nap. The butterflies fluttered, unperturbed by the knell of the bells and the wind danced as the clouds soared. Nothing seemed to be unusual or out of place… but the delirium of the tolling bells unsettled Lementa's nerves and her sleep was fitful and interrupted.

Something was off… and Lementa couldn't quite place her finger on it. The bells, they had another purpose besides heralding mass and announcing a death.

What was it?

* * *

**And we have jumped back a month in time! Can anyone put together what is going on? :D I will have to say it… I think this chapter was fairly well done… I will admit there was some awkwardly worded parts… courtesy of my neurotic description and some people are wondering as to why I jumped so far back in time. I'm smiling at Aren though… he has no clue his sister is the Elrios equivalent of a terrorist… But yeah… About Aren… don't bother trying to decode his song… it's the Ancient Language (A.K.A. a made up language created by me that is essentially Latin and Traditional Chinese spliced together by me with the help of Google Translate.) I'll post the English Lyrics to the song after the reviewer replies, so look down there if you're interested. You'll discover as to what Aren was doing later on in the story… and the master race Eve has appeared! XD Lementa and Voidia live in Decir… ringing any bells for you? :D But yeah… They share the name Aisha so their names technically are Aisha Lementa and Aisha Voidia… We'll be seeing Voidia next chapter along with some… Raven! Woot! Elesis! Woohoo! AND… wait for it… ELSWORD! WOOHOO! I'm also really psyched at the nine reviews the first chapter received! That means so much to me… I really appreciate the support that you guys leave me with a review! All authors do! Click the white box… no need to be shy! X3 I welcome constructive criticism, jokes, praise, all that lovely stuff XD Just no flames… that's just rude… But holy CRAP! Aren's song took me an entire HOUR to translate… AN HOUR… Makes me wonder if all the songs in the Ancient Language are going to be this time consuming… There is a really good reason as to why I chose Latin and Traditional Chinese for the makeup of the Ancient Language. A) Latin is the basis for most major Western languages and Chinese is the basis for most Eastern writings. B) It will be explained further into the story. Now on to reviewer replies! :D**

* * *

**Random people030- Yes... Ar Tonelico's soundtrack is gorgeous... Thank you :D *Takes the cookie***

**Jetstream Girge- It would be too much work... I'm lazy XD As for the Ar Tonelico elements... I admit... it will be similar... but it will be different enough so it stands out and it will carry some of my signature panache... I actually researched Ar Tonelico to clarify some things up... and yeah... it will be similar but very different... sort of like nostalgia you know? **

**AkitaEls- There are some religious themes in here... and I quoted a quote from a book with religious themes... Trust me Aki... this is FAST compared to how I normally introduce my characters... I agree with you in the differences in class... Yeah... I view DW and VP as more polar opposite from each other than VP and EM... just like I view IS and RS more polar opposite than RS and LK... I'm not going to say anything about anyone's role in the story as it will be spoilery... but you'll get a good idea as the story goes on... Both sides are a lot more grey than you think... it's going to be pretty hard to draw a moral line and just wait until late in the story... it will be a slap to your face. Yup... you add details and you sacrifice speed and slow down your pacing... it's a case of can't have your cake and eat it too.**

**Sugarlatte- Hopefully you'll be less confused as the story goes on... I will take some blame... I deliberately made it so it would be a bit vague and unclear... I might've went overboard though... I do apologize... I pray that you start to get a clearer picture of what is happening. **

**Spirify- Oberon is Eve's part-time punching bag and a motorcycle... Proto is an elite Nasod with a high-tech battle code inside her... I think Add has some dignity left to him XD Ara is a bad*** She's Lelouch! XDDD *Shot for Code Geass reference* I don't consider CH1 very long... very long is over 6k words for me XD IS x VP OTP :D**

**Arrow-chan3- That's nothing compared to what I have planned for later in the story :D**

**SakuraLina- Should I start inputting a note in my stories in the AN to clarify some of the meanings? OAO I'm glad you think this chapter is good... I do try =w=; I don't know if I always succeed though... How about EXEC_FLIP_ Fusion Sphere? The lyrics are so beautiful! :,D Present tense... past tense... I was really mixed up... I kept writing the 10th chapter for YnT in present tense, managed to revert to past tense and then nearly wrote this thing in past tense! XD Ara's face is bigger on the cover because her portrait was huge and I was too lazy to shrink it at that point... XD I did not mean that... but looking back... it was quite eloquent and fitting :) Ah... some of the things you said... I really can't clarify but... they'll be cleared up as the story continues :D**

**Majestic War- What can I say but thanks? :D I'm glad you think the battle scene was good... there'll be more of them spiced up with a couple of deaths lolol *Shot***

**Astaria Mel Kanariane- EXEC- COSMOFLIPS is one of the best :D And I did mean METHOD_ WITH METALFALICA... it's the song that Lucha and Cloche sing together to create the perfect Metalfalica... it's a fusion of both girl's versions of the song :)**

* * *

**And here is Aren's song in English case you wanted to know (Yes... I'm full aware the lyrics are sappy... I never said I was a pro XD)**

_"In the darkest hour, I offer on to you my heart and soul. My light and life."_

_"Take this gift I give to you and remember the words I told you."_

_"In the night on the sunless day, take the hallowed shard of light I offer to you."_

_"Through the rage it shall be soothing."_

_"Through the pain it will be comforting."_

_"Through the cold it will be warming."_

_"Through the tears it will be bright."_

_"Through the grief it will be joy."_

_"Through the hellish heat it will be cooling."_

_"Through the life it will be your support."_

_"This hallowed piece of light I offer unto you is my feeble soul."_

_"This is a flickering lantern of hope on the wayward winding path of the sorrowful life."_

_"This, all I have to offer you."_

_"My dear seraphic angel you are not alone."_

_"If you can endure the darkness long enough, soon the sun will rise."_

_"Miracles happen every day don't you see?"_


	3. Dream Pattern- Shadow

**EXEC FLIP ARPHAGE**

**Dream Pattern- Shadow**

* * *

"_We only live in fire, consumed by it or purified."_

"_Either way we burn. Or blood burns."_

"_We feel the heat in our flesh."_

"_It is our lifelong purification; this fire is God's love, this intolerable fire that consumes us."_

"_This is the death of fire, which is the life of fire."_

_-The Kingdom of the Grail_

* * *

_Earlier that same day…_

* * *

The sun lambently drifts up into the sky, the early morning tempera bathing the sky in the colors of lemon and watermelon. Roused by the dawn's brilliance, a cock with a ruby crest and glossy feathers of golden-sheened russet and teal-tinged navy blue crows exultantly, and its cries herald the sun's ascension. The sleeping village wakes up and comes alive as the sun continues to rise at a languorous pace dying the sky a robin-shell blue.

On the outskirts of the village among the gently sloping hills of emerald dotted with fruit trees laid a cozy two-story tall brick house. It is a homey settlement, the rustic colors calm and warming. Decorating the front is a hedge of roses, the wooly white blossoms tinged just the faintest hue of pastel pink and a birdbath made of steel-grey granite. A ruddy-bellied robin splashes merrily in the crystal water held by the basin, breaking the sky's reflection.

Stirred by the new day's callings, Lementa feebly stirs in her bed, cracking open her left eye, revealing a sliver of violet. "Mmm…" She murmurs an unintelligible word and reluctantly withdraws from her bed's warm hug. Sitting up on the disheveled bed, she lets out a loud yawn and rubs her eyes. Looking out from under her tousled tresses, she spies her twin sleeping on the other bed on her half of the room.

The girls' bedroom is small but cozy with two beds, a desk hewn from the trunk of an oak tree, and a small walk-in closet. The walls are painted in a palliating lavender and the moquette carpet is a creamy white with a violet floral pattern on it. Crumbled papers litter the desk and on Voidia's side of the room, clothes are strewn about carelessly. A whispery sigh escapes from Lementa and she stands up.

"Voidia…" She breathes and takes a tentative step towards the quiescent figure of her elder twin. "Hello?" She tries again. "_Zzzt…_" A muted snore flits from Voidia and she shifts around, entangling herself in the sateen bed sheets. "Hey… sleepy head… it's time to wake up." Lementa attempts once more, louder this time. "_Zzzt_…" Voidia responds and rolls on to her stomach. Compressing her lips into a thin line, Lementa marches over to where Voidia is laying, grabs the ebon sheets, and wrenches them with all her might.

"Kya!" A startled yelp is heard as Voidia is yanked free from the sheet's hold and tossed to the ground. "That was really unnecessary…" She grumbles dourly and staggers to her feet, her hair disheveled and her eyes half-lidded in a somnolent expression. "Not my fault you're such a sleepy head V." Lementa rejoins, crossing her arms as the corners of her mouth twitch upwards. Despite herself, Voidia broke out into a wide grin. "I'm not a sleepy-head Le. You just get up freakishly early."

An amused snort escapes Lementa and she shakes her head at her sister's witty repartee. "It's eight o'clock." She replies and points a finger at the circular neon purple clock which is hanging above the door. Voidia rolls her eyes and places one hand on her brow and another on her hips. "Oh my! I've missed so much of this day already! All those plans I had for today, now never to be completed!" Lementa releases an exaggerated sigh at Voidia's satirical response. "Stop being so melodramatic V. It's eight o'clock and we're growing up. That means we're going to have to get used to all the responsibilities of being an adult and I can tell you right now, sleeping in 'til eleven o'clock is not how an adult acts."

Void blows her bangs out of her eyes and plops down on the bed, crossing her arms and giving Lementa a chaffed look. "I'm not a grown-up Le… Besides… I'm the older twin here." She retorts, marginally put-out. Lementa chortles softly and tugs on the violet shock of hair that sticks straight up on her head. "You certainly act like the older one here." Voidia sticks her tongue out at Lementa in a puerile gesture. "You don't know how to enjoy life," she avers. Lementa huffed and shook her head, clucking her tongue as she did so. "I do too! I just enjoy my life in a different way than capering around like a monkey!" She repudiates zealously and tugs on the sleeves of her lacey white nightdress. Voidia gives her younger sister a complacent smirk and bends over to pick the bed coverings off the floor.

"Uh huh… say what you want to say… I'm going back to bed now to enjoy my childhood before I'm stripped of it." She states and lays down on the rumpled bed, throwing the covers over her. Lementa giggles impishly and looks to the door, an expression of utmost wickedness on her face. "Well… In that case… I'll just have your share of pancakes." She drawls puckishly and sets herself to make the bed. Instantaneously, Voidia shot up and gaped disbelievingly at Lementa. "You wouldn't dare!" She gasps, her jaw dropping, making her mouth form a perfect "o" of surprise.

The younger twin cackles and tucks in the corners of her own snow-white bed sheets, completing her immaculate bed-making job. Voidia lets out a sibilant _tch! _and practically vaults off the bed, haphazardly throwing the covers on the bed. "Over my dead body!" She exclaims fervidly and rushes over to the closet. Muttering under her breath, Voidia sifts through the clothes, indiscriminately flinging them on the ground. With an amused expression, Lementa saunters over to the closet but her self-satisfied countenance is replaced by a look of sheer horror as she sees her elder twin throw _her _garments on the ground as well.

"V! Stop! You're messing up my stuff as well!" Lementa cries and scrambles into the closet, feverishly plucking her clothes off the floor. "Then you shouldn't threaten to eat my pancakes then Le." Voidia retorts wryly and pulls out the clothes she was going to wear today. "There!" She exclaims and holds it up. They were a black sleeveless shirt, a pleated black skirt with a coriaceous ink-black belt, a vaguely dressy ebon jacket with dusk-purple accents, and a pair of black high-tops with violet laces. "Good for you." Lementa gripes and carefully hangs the clothes back up on the hanger, making sure they are organized by type, color, and season.

"I don't get why you do that." Voidia remarks as she takes her violet button-down shirt and her matching pants off and slips on her clothes. Lementa sighs and hangs the last outfit back on the clothes rack. "I do it to keep organized. It saves time." She replies dryly and picks out an airy snow-white chemise. Voidia casts a skeptical eyebrow at her younger twin. "I'm not seeing it." Lementa snorts and flips her hair with a shake of her head. "It works, save for when a certain _someone _comes barging in here and wrecks it." She replies tartly.

Voidia shrugs and grabs two violet velvet bowties out of the small white cabinet which is pressed up against the wall and half-buried underneath the curtain of Voidia's clothes which are starting to slide off their hanger. "Eh… to each his own." She replies sagely and secures her natty lavender locks into two spiked pigtails.

"Oh no…" Lementa moans as she sieves through the myriad hair accessories that are jumbled together in an eclectic mixture. "What?" Voidia enquires curiously as she tucks in her shirt. "I can't find my hair ribbons." She sighs irascibly and flops down on the floor. "Guess your organization didn't help you, huh?" Voidia jibes and cocks her head to the side with a rakish air. "You're helpful." Lementa mutters in an undertone and continues to paw through the drawer. The elder twin exhales deeply and shakes her head. "I don't see what you're making such a big fuss about. Can't you just wear something else?" She queries and rubs the back of her head.

"Hue… I could but those ribbons were my favorite." Lementa answers tristfully and shuts the drawer with a despondent look. Voidia smiles softly and walks over to the drawer. "Here you go." She pulls open the second drawer and withdraws to purple ribbons that gleam with a satiny sheen. Lementa's eyes widen and she stares incredulously at her older twin. "Are you sure V? These are your favorite ribbons!" Voidia chuckles gaily and holds them out. "I know that, but I don't mind lending them to you until you find your ribbons." Numbly, Lementa nods and holds her hand out. "Thank you," she breathes gratefully. Voidia beams and drops the ribbons into Lementa's outstretched palm. "Just make sure you return them or there's going to be hell to pay." She adds with a jovial wink. Lementa smirks and scrutinizes the ribbons before replying.

"You're the one who loses the stuff here." She drawls matter-of-factly and secures her hair into two low-hanging pigtails. "Heh-" A dry laugh escapes from Voidia, "You were the one that lost your ribbon."

* * *

In the dining room, across from an arched window where sunlight cascades through, bathing the room in light is a small wooden table, draped in white linen with gardenia blossoms embroidered on the ends and laden with pancakes, a porcelain teapot with a sky blue geometric pattern painted on it, and a sizeable jug of maple syrup. A fragrant aroma wafts from the pancakes in languid wisps of spiraling steam and the small golden pats of butter on the pancakes melt. Anne- the girls' guardian and a cordial woman with a slight figure, rubicund cheeks, shocking pink hair subdued into a low-hanging ponytail, and sparkling aquamarine eyes, smiled jubilantly and poured maple syrup on a stack. "Mmm!" Voidia nods approvingly as she stuffs a sizeable hunk in her mouth and leans back, a beatific expression crossing her sharp but graceful features. Anne nods graciously and takes her seat at the table. "I take it she enjoys the pancakes?" She enquires offhandedly to Lementa who nods, struggling to keep a straight face. Voidia swallows and shrugs her shoulders. "You make the best hotcakes Anne, what can I say?" Lementa smiles affably and bobs her head up and down. "That is true." She states and helps herself to a sizeable portion, pouring even more maple syrup on the pile. "Lementa…" Anne warns lightly. Lementa's cheeks tinge themselves a rosy red and with an abashed expression, she sets the jug back on the table.

"Leave some for us Le!" Void calls out in a facetious tone. Lementa flames vividly and she shoots Voidia a churlish look. "H-hey!" She stammers and bites her bottom lip. "Girls…girls… Settle down." Anne chided and shook her head, brushing her blunt bangs to the side. The twins sigh and resume eating. "So what do you plan to do today?" Anne chirrups and pours herself a cup of cinnamon tea from the china teapot. "I'm going to the village to hang out with Speka." Voidia answers and motions for the teapot. Anne dips her head in acknowledgment and passes the teapot to Voidia who bows her head in thanks and pours the tea into her teacup. "And you?" Anne probed, diverting her attention to Lementa. The younger twin sighs and leans back in her chair. "Ah… I'm just going to relax outside."

"Planning on becoming the world's next great philosopher aren't you Le?" Voidia razzes as she took a swig from her eggshell teacup. Lementa lets out a maddened sigh and tips her head to the side. "What I do is none of your business V." She snips tersely and purses her lips into a thin line. "Come on! You never come with me to hang out with Speka or anything!" Voidia exclaims and shakes her head bewilderedly.

"Maybe I just have different ways of having fun than traipsing around like a hooligan." Lementa retorts stiffly and narrows her eyes. "Like what? Being a lonely introvert who has no friends?" Voidia rejoins deprecatingly. "Why you-"

"Girls!" Anne cries and slams her palm against the table surface, making the silverware rattle and the girls jump in their seats. With a vexed expression, she slides her tapered stare between Lementa and Voidia who hang their heads shamefacedly. "Sorry…" Lementa mumbles sheepishly into her lap. Voidia fidgets around disconcertedly before shoving the rest of her pancakes into her mouth. "I'll be leaving now." Voidia announces as she swigs the rest of her tea. The corners of Anne's mouth turn downwards into an annoyed frown, but before she could chastise the purplenette, she had left the room.

"Kids these days…" Anne mutters drily in an undertone. "Are so very hard to deal with." Lementa nods and helps herself to another serving of pancakes. "Indeed." She acquiesces.

* * *

An apprehensive Proto stands before Queen Eve in the throne room, her face is expressionless but her skittish posture betrays her nervousness. Overhead, the gilded chandeliers hanging from the arched ceiling glows with a muted halo of citron light as the candles burn and the light from the stained-glass windows breaks the woe-dark shadows the candles cast into fiery bits.

Sitting on the plush velvet cushions of her throne, casual in her formal elegance is Eve- her expression is impassive, but the thinness of her mouth betray a dangerous amount of ire. Flanking each side of the throne is her two principal confidants- Ophelia the maid and Oberon the swordsman. "What do you mean those fools from the rebellion destroyed the innermost circle of Velder by magic?" She queries crisply and leans back against her throne.

Proto grimaces and checks the bundle of papers she is cradling in her arms. "The damage is far too extensive for just mundane feats of terrorism milady. Such an appalling amount of destruction could be wrought by no other means except by those of arcane methods." She replies dispassionately and presses the papers against her bosom. The queen flashes an ugly smile and crosses her arms. "Tell me my dear Proto- what are the requirements to use magic?"

Sensing her treacherously light tone, Proto gulps down the lump that has swelled up in her throat and diffidently shifts her weight.

"There are two conditions milady: one is that the person must have the aptitude to perform magic and the second is that the person must have a Harmonic Stone so their magic resonates with the El tower. It is humanely impossible to perform magic without a Harmonic Stone unless the person is an Arialist… but Arialists are so rare that it is highly unlikely that they have even one Arialist among their ranks; moreover, Arialists are forbidden from using offensive-type hymns due to the power of the Ancient Language and the sheer destructiveness of the Ancient Hymns that were crafted for battle. I believe the Magistratum has destroyed most of the tablets that those Hymns were inscribed on anyways"

Proto pauses and cocks her head to the left, a bemused expression flashing across her features. "However, the Magistratum strictly regulates the distribution of the Harmonic Stones and we would never- Ah…" Realization dawns on the snow-haired Proto and her visage changes from puzzled to vehement in a lightning-strike moment. Eve nodded deliberately, her mien sardonic and her laugh humorless and bitter.

"Milady! Are you saying that there is a traitor amongst us?" Proto exclaims, scandalized. Eve gently drums her fingertips against each other and nods. "Indeed, that is exactly what I am saying." Proto scowls fervidly and shakes her head in disbelief. "What sort of degenerate pariah would sell out the rightful government of this land to a bunch of tin-pot crack heads who have no sense of restraint!?" She cries zealously and gnashes her teeth together. Eve shakes her head and tucks the loose platinum lock that dangle from the inextricably braided buns of her elegant coiffure behind her ear. "Whatever refuse he or she may be, they must be in quite a lofty position to know the charms to unravel the high-tier defenses protecting the Vault."

The equanimity that Eve states it with unnerves Proto and the snowy-haired woman shakes her head despondently. "What do you want me to do milady?" She enquires bitterly. The queen gives Proto a disparaging look and she shakes her head. "You are to do nothing about the predicament-"

"Milady!" Proto yelps, her eyes wide as cantaloupes. Eve raises her hand to silence the woman, "You are to do nothing about it. I just want you to continue with your task of hunting down the key rebellion figures. Perhaps if you capture them you can, ah… 'Persuade' them to give you information. I meanwhile shall have an official look over the records and see if any reports were filed about missing Harmonic Stones. The El Lady only knows just how many important things get lost in transit with all the rubbish paperwork flowing in from every end of Elrios." Eve sighs petulantly and shakes her head, liberally massaging her forehead. "Do you think you can handle those instructions?"

Proto nods passionately and kneels down before the queen on one knee. "Of course milady, anything for you. Despite what some… 'people' may think, you have never led us wrong or acted selfishly. If you have any flaws at all, it is that you work too hard for the sake of Rurensia and the happiness of the masses." She lauds admiringly towards Eve who smiles humorlessly. "I fear you may be all too right with that praise Proto. Please, do me a favor and never extol me again." Proto laughs gaily. "If you say so milady," she rises to one knee and flips her silken tresses. "I wish whoever shall be hunting for the traitor the best of luck on their journey, and I pray the liver-lilied scum is caught."

Eve inclines her head and gazes at the florid mosaic grafted into the window. Ghost-like, she diverts her eyes back to Proto and stares at the woman with red-slashed eyes.

"Oh… they shall be caught, no doubt about it. And when they are, I shall have their head brought before me on a silver platter and then I shall pulverize it and feed it to the swine herds out in the field. That shall be a fitting end to such contemptible filth."

* * *

Timber-and-plaster houses and open-fronted shops with large, gaudy signs protruding from their lintels fell away and the street widened into an avenue. Vender stalls appeared, canvases of lurid striped cloth hung over the wooden crates, tables, and chairs as the hucksters hawked their wares and the wandering minstrels performed in the streets. Leaning casually against the cool stone walls of the building that stood next to the stall of the vender who sold glacé pralines was Voidia, her expression indolent and her smile playful as she watches her best friend- Speka rush towards her with her black satchel swinging wildly in the wind.

Speka was a young woman around Voidia's age with violet hair cut short into a blunt bob and wide stormy grey eyes hidden behind her tortoise-shell rimmed glasses. She is dressed in a short black skirt, stygian knee-high boots with violet laces, and a crinkly sable lace tube top. On her head is her ever-present witch hat with a wide satin ribbon running around the width of the floppy cone.

"You're still wearing that stupid thing?" Voidia enquired dubiously, her nose crinkling as she ogled at it. Speka rolls her eyes dismissively and adjusts the hat, so it is slightly askew, lending it a jaunty air. "I happen to like this hat." Speka says her tone mildly indignant. "I see that you're still wearing pigtails at the age of eighteen." Voidia smirks and flips her spiked pigtails. "I happen to be very proud of my pigtails, I consider them my trademark." Speka chortles lowly, "So stop criticizing my hat." She states flatly. Voidia snorts and adjusts her jacket. "There is a difference tough… My pigtails make me look awesome, your hat makes it seem like you conjure broomsticks and make voodoo dolls of people."

Speka turns a baleful eye on her. "Don't tempt me."

* * *

A white wraith unobtrusively ghosts closer to the ramparts of the village, weaving through the trees that dotted the pasture. A gruff sentry clad in a well-oiled set of armor stands guard in front of the gate alongside three of his companions as he guards the village for the day. The steel cuirass he dons gleams a blinding yellow-tinged white in the blaring sun. The specter floats closer to the group, with a malignantly gleaming pistol in each hand. Engraved on the white enamel surface of each gun is a series of flowing archaic runes. The sentry stiffens, sensing something amiss. The skin on the back of his neck tingles and his gut clenches itself into an iron ball of arctic steel. Narrowing his eyes, the sentry scans the area, exchanging apprehensive looks with his companions who also sense something is awry. The wraith flattens itself against the trunk of a poplar, evading the scrutinizing glare of the sentry. Once the coast is clear, the phantom streaks through the trees like lightning. The rapid movement attracts the attention of the sentry, but before he could do so much as shout, he crumbles to the ground.

His three companions stare at the fallen body of their leader and watch the blood bubble out of him and form an oozing puddle. Slowly, they turn in the direction the wraith was spotted, only to find the nightmarish specter standing right in front of them, aiming the weapons it carried straight at them. "Good night." It whispers and squeezes the trigger. A silent flash of light erupts from the muzzle and two more bodies collapse to the ground, their eyes glazing over and rolling into the back of their head.

The final guard stares recalcitrantly at the wraith, his hand on the hilt of his sword. "You shall not go unpunished for your iniquitous deeds today you varlet!" The specter laughs humorlessly and raises the pistol in his left hand and aims it at the guard's head. "My entire life is a living perdition. The world is punishing me for my existence for it is sinful." A guttural growl rises from the guard's throat. "You!" He snarls savagely and lunges at the specter.

"Pathetic."

A spurt of red gore erupts from the top of the guard's head and he crumbles to the ground, half his face blown off revealing a mash of grey, pink, and glistening red, his left eye dangling loosely from its socket. The specter glowers coolly at the three bodies before taking his hood and mask off, revealing a young man with a shock of brunet-tipped blonde and callous eyes of icy blue. "May your valor contribute to a worthy soul." He says dispassionately and withdraws a diminutive cerulean crystal from his armored boot, the sharply faceted edges sparkling like the dancing crests of the ocean on a sunny day.

_"Vagi spiritus, venit ad me."_

The corpses glow with a misty aura and a silver vapor rises from them. The mist congeals, forming a flurry of silvery orbs that pulsate with the beat of life. The young man holds the gem out towards the orbs and they flare brightly, struggling to resist the magnetic pull of the gem. Their efforts are futile however and they submit, allowing themselves to be dragged into the crystal. It blazes lustrously, streamers of silver light spilling out from it. The young man nods approvingly and utters a quick command, extinguishing the glow. He places the gem back in his boot and makes his way back to the camp where his men are waiting to make rivers of blood flow in the streets of the village of Decir.

* * *

The delirious bells rang at noon.

* * *

Voidia and Speka sit at a marble fountain's edge eating apples and watching an elderly woman feed the pigeons while enjoying the light misty spray the arching water showered them with. In the sun, the pigeon feathers gleam rosy pink, aquamarine green, and bronzy red as they squabble with each other for the breadcrumbs. "With all their fighting, a cat could come in and start eating them and they wouldn't notice until it was their feathers in the cat's mouth." Speka remarks wittily and takes another bite out of her apple, savoring the sweet juicy flesh. Voidia chuckles softly and chucks her apple core on the ground, earning a reproachful look from the elderly lady. "Maybe I should go get that old tabby that hangs out in front of the pub and-"

_Ding dong!_

A solemn knell rings through the air, interrupting Voidia's remark and cutting it short. "What is that?!" Speka yelps and shoots up in the air, her eyes wide and her posture anxious. Voidia narrows her eyes and wildly looks around, flinging a frantic glance in every direction. "There!" She cries and points towards the western end of the village where several plumes of grey smoke billow up into the sky. "What's happening?" Speka cries fretfully, her skin paling to an ashen grey. "We need to go there!" Voidia exclaims and leaps to her feet. "Are you insane?!" Speka hollers and claps her hands over her temples, screwing her eyes shut in frustration and wildly shaking her head. Voidia whips her head back and forth fervently and stamps her foot on the ground. "We need to check up on your family! They're in danger!" She points out furiously and shoots another unsettled look towards the plumes of smoke. Speka bites her bottom lip and nods her head. "I see where you're coming from, but what about Anne and Lementa at your place?" In the distance, the din of the panicked village resounds through the air as the villagers become aware of the attack.

Voidia grimaces and hangs her head, swiftly calculating the best course of action. Letting out a frustrated scream, she clasps her elbows against her ears and shook her head ardently. "Gaah!" Speka looks around her. Screaming people run pell-mell in the streets around them carrying torches in broad daylight, banging on pots, and notifying each other to the fact the village is under attack. "I'll go warn my family, you go alert Lementa and Anne." Speka suggests. Voidia shakes her head intensely in protest. "No! I'll go with you!" She replies heatedly. Speka's eyes widen and she takes a tremulous step back.

"Are you sure?!" She whispers hesitantly. Voidia nods and tugs on her right pigtail. "There's no way I'm leaving a friend. Once I make sure you and your family are okay, and then I'll rush back and warn Anne and Lementa, they're way out there in the outskirts on the opposite side, they'll be safe." Speka stares doubtfully at Voidia but she nods her head and gives Voidia a half-hearted attempt at a smile. "Thanks." She whispers feebly and dips her head. Voidia snorts and stares in the direction of the smoke.

"Thank me when we get out of here alive."

* * *

Flames crackle and dance as the village burns around them. A scalding wind blows through the streets, carrying with it the stinging kisses of smoldering embers. Struck with cold dread, the two girls pause and gape at the carnage around them. Bodies litter the street, mangled and unclothed. Where the men's genitals should be was only mangled flesh, smeared butcher bright with blood and something that resembled sausages hang out from their mouth. The women's legs were sprawled out, revealing their lewd parts. The icy stab of revulsion penetrated the girl's being as the comprehension of what they saw dawns on them. Voidia retches and staggers backwards, Speka gags and pukes in her hands. "Wh-why?!" Speka gasps as she heaves uncontrollably.

"W-what are you two doing here?! Y-you… you need… y-you need to… need…" A young waif mauve-haired waif with cobalt eyes gasps as she staggers from behind a half-burnt stone building towards the two girls. Her gaze is feverish, and her skin is red and angry where fire had licked it and multiple shallow cuts on her arms, face, and legs sweat crimson beads of blood. "N-Noah?!" Speka yelps, identifying her at once.

Noah was the waitress at the village pub and occasionally she would join Speka and Voidia on their daily adventures in the village when she wasn't busy waiting on customers and serving them their tankards of ale and bourbon. "St-stupid…" Noah chokes, tears running down her face. "What's going on?!" Voidia yelps worriedly. Noah breaks out into a fit of deranged laughter and drops to her knees, her braided buns unraveling and her navy-blue blouse torn and her denim pants in tatters.

"Th-they're…. they're… killing… they're… everyone…" Noah wheezes and clenches her sides. "What?!" Speka yelps, her face contorted with revulsion. Noah smiles blackly and shakes her head. "Hahahaha!" She cackles and falls on her back. "Noah! Stop! You're scaring me!" Voidia screams and claps her hand over her mouth. Noah heaves a convulsive laugh and rolls over on her side. "Why… w-why… running… don't you… Why don't you run?!" Noah shrieks and staggers to her feet. Speka gapes at her, aghast. "What… what about my family?!" Speka inquires weakly, cold dread clutching her heart. The crazed grin that Noah flashes her strikes her with an anguished fear. "No!" She breathes and stumbles backwards, clutching at her heart.

"Yes…" Noah whispers manically and lumbers closer to Speka. "Noah!" Voidia shrieks and stamps her foot against the ground. "Th-they're all… all… th-they're dead… th-those… bas… they killed them all!" Noah titters hysterically and collapses to the ground in front of a distraught Speka who watches the convulsing form of Noah with an admixture of repugnance, shock, and panic. "…!" A muffled gasp of dismay escapes Speka who shakes her head fervidly. "Everyone…?" She trails weakly and buries her face in her hands.

"Ev-everyone…" Noah chuckles darkly and wipes the tears away from her eyes, staring effusively at the smoky orange sky. "Tortured your father, peeling back his skin and then debauched your mother in front of him while he was being skinned. Then they molested your four-year old sister and smashed your seven-year old brother's head in… Oh and let's not forget the baby… Eh heh heh… It made such a racket that one of the men just ripped the poor thing's head right off his-"

"STOP!" Speka wails and slams her hands over her ears, her face flushed and shining with tears. "Cut it out Noah!" Voidia screeches and gesticulates wildly with her hands. Noah snorts and degenerates into an uncontrolled fit of coughing. "A-all in –cough- br-broad da-daylight –cough- too in th-the –cough- streets…" She laughs some more. "Y-you sh- should've… r-ran…" She whispers sibilantly and lolls her head to the side. Voidia opens her mouth to reply but a streak of light hits Noah in the face. A macabre shriek rips itself from Noah's throat and a fountain of red gore spurts from the top of her skull. Then she falls silent and becomes still.

Stunned, Voidia looks up in the direction where the light had come from. A slight male figure clad in white and black armor stands a little ways away from the two girls, brandishing a snow-white pistol in each hand. His face is hidden behind a hooded mask and two shimmering azure bands billow out from behind him. "Oh shit…" Voidia whispers, horror-struck. The figure raises his pistol and aims, wrapping his pointer finger around the trigger and he squeezes it. Voidia balks as the bullet whizzes right by her, grazing her face. The heat osculates her cheek, stinging it. An unearthly scream is heard from Speka and then the young woman collapses to the ground, her chest blossoming with lustrous claret bubbles.

"Speka!" Voidia hollers, turning towards the slain figure of her friend, tears gushing from her shining violet eyes. Livid, she whips towards her killer. "You bastard!" She screeches and strikes her foot against the ground. The figure cocks his head to the side as if observing a particularly peculiar animal. "My, my… that's rather uncouth of you… What a dishonorable choice of final words." He muses airily, his voice youthful but cool and disdainful. Voidia gnashes her teeth together and spews out a vehement stream of curse words. Stiffening, the figure lowers his guns and slowly walks towards her. "I'll give you one last chance to pray." He spits frigidly and presses the muzzle of the gun against Voidia's forehead.

The purplenette tenses, feeling the cold metal press ever-so-lightly against the heated flesh of her forehead, searing it with sheer iciness. "You're the devil." Voidia susurrates bitterly and narrows her eyes. The figure tilts his chin up. "So I've been told." He replies crisply. "How could you do such a thing? Those women were violated… those men stripped of their dignity! You murdered my friend!" Voidia snarls, sputum flying from her mouth. The figure sighs dispassionately and shoves the gun closer into Voidia's forehead, forcing it to tip backwards. "I am sorry for your loss, but I am to let no one live… as for the other men and women… I would've preferred if that had not happened. I specifically told my men to not do anything so excessive, but alas… I suppose that is the sort of stuff that you have to put up with hiring men of such an ignoble caliber. Unfortunately, the nature of this undertaking required me to hire men of… ah… 'Sketchier' sorts." The figure snorts and shakes his head. "You can rest assured that I shall castigate them for such obstreperous conduct once I have completed my task here." At that point Voidia lost it.

"CASTIGATE THEM?! ARE YOU FUCKING KIDDING ME?! AS IF SCOLDING THEM?! THOSE MEN RAPED LITTLE GIRLS! THOSE MEN WERE BRUTALIZED AND FORCED TO WATCH AS THEIR CHERISHED ONES WERE MASSACRED AND DEFILED! YOU'RE SORRY?! YOU MOTHERFUCKING ASSHOLE! YOU WILL BURN IN HELL FOR THIS IF I HAVE TO HAUNT YOU AND DRAG YOU DOWN TO HELL MYSELF!" She invectives barbarously and spits on the figure's face. The figure exhales noisily and wipes the spittle from his snowy facemask, pulling the gun away from Voidia's forehead for a brief moment. "Oh my… all your shouting is giving me a headache… please do me and yourself a favor and go down quietly, ok? It shall be painless for you that way at least. Think of it, you'll be able to see your friend again." He thrusts the gun carelessly against Voidia's forehead again, knocking her head back.

Voidia doesn't think, she just reacts. She jerks her knee upwards, ramming it into the male's crotch. Caught off guard, he staggers backward from the impact as pain crashes through his lower body. Ripping herself free from the grief-ridden terror that locked her muscles into place, Voidia turns around and breaks into a mad dash away the figure, towards her own home. Muttering an infuriated curse under his breath, the figure whips his gun upwards and fires, grazing the side of Voidia's torso and making her stumble to the ground from the hot flash of pain. He fires again but his aim is too high and he hits the window of the desecrated apothecary, shattering the glass windows in a spray of sparkling quartz. Voidia regains her footing and sprints helter-skelter through a winding maze of smoldering buildings, before taking refuge inside a burnt-out shell of what was once a tailor shop, hidden from sight. Hyperventilating like crazy, Voidia collapses to the ground and leans herself against the warm charred-stone of the building, clutching her hand against her wound, "At least it doesn't feel like anything worse than a cut." Voidia chortles humorlessly to herself and takes the blood-splotched hand away from the wound, holding its quivering form in front of her face.

"I don't see any of the men that bastard mentioned… does that mean they're swarming the other side of town?" Voidia queries listlessly to herself. "In that case…" Her eyes widen and she sharply sucks in her breath. "Anne and Lementa!" She expletives fervently under her breath and pushes herself to her feet, blenching as a scathing needle of pain stabs her side. "Crap… this may be shallow… but it hurts like hell." She grumbles and presses her hand against the wall for support. "I… need to warn them…"

* * *

Weaving her way through the burning buildings and leaping over the mutilated corpses, Voidia sees the bandits that are annihilating her home. They are crude men with gnarled greasy locks of hair and coarse faces, dressed in filthy grey blouses streaked with rusty-brown blood. The burgundy color of blood dies their arms up to their elbows and they swing around notched swords no longer a steely grey, but now a glistening maroon. Evading their crazed stares by darting inside the charred skeletons of buildings and ducking behind the mounds of smashed crates and barrels, she works her way through the village, watching the men with revulsion as she glimpses them in their depravity. She notices that whenever they killed someone, they would take out a scintillating blue crystal from a pocket in their tunic and they would mutter an incomprehensible phrase. A silvery vapor rises from the corpses of the deceased before coalescing into a prismatic flurry of orbs that was drawn into the crystal. Several questions race through Voidia's mind but she does not pause to contemplate them.

_Why is this happening?_

_What is with those crystals?_

_Are Anne and Lementa still alright?_

_Somebody… anybody… help… please…_

_Please let this all be a gruesome dream…_

She comes to the rutted road leading outside the village and follows it. In the distance, Voidia can spy her house lying on the gently sloping mounds of verdant, foliage-draped earth, a tiny rust-red speck in the distance. Voidia much to her dismay spots the men swarming the area around the house, conceiving mayhem and dismembering the fruit trees with their swords after acquisitively filching the fruit off the branches. Once the men had retreated to a different area a little ways away and a path was miraculously clear, Voidia breaks into a reckless dash towards the settlement, not caring if any of the men spotted her now. If the men had gotten that far, then Anne was probably lost anyways and Lementa…

A knot tightens in Voidia's throat and the graphic images of the cadavers of the women in the village flash vividly in the backdrop of Voidia's vision. No… she must not think about that.

* * *

The house seems deserted, there is no activity and all the doors are locked and the windows are shuttered close. Hope that Anne and Lementa are still alive and fended off the mob flares through Voidia. She calls their names as loudly as she dares through the door, no one answered her. She creeps around to the side and tries to pull back the shutters to no avail, they are firmly secured. Voidia was unwilling to expose herself to the side of the house where the mob had gone; she walks over to the kitchen windows in front of the house and pulls the shutters blocking the window. A plank pulls off in her hands with a loud _skreee! _and she stands jangling with fear of discovery, looking about desperately for a place to hide. A minute passed, but no one came running and Voidia resumes placing her attention to the opening she made in the kitchen window.

Squeezing through the tight opening she made in the window, Voidia almost feel on her back in the kitchen sink. Potatoes sat in a washtub next to the kitchen sink, immersed in water. On the cutting board beside them, several golden ones squatted in the earthy nest of their peeled skins. The flensing knife lies on the reed mat. Anne must've left in a hurry.

"Anne?" Voidia calls out tentatively, stepping from the kitchen to the dining room. "Lementa?" No answer came and a worm of doubt wriggled its way from Voidia's heart to her brain. Had the mob dragged them off screaming and violated them like they did so many other women? The thought sets her breathing quickly again. She rushes from room to room, crying her sister's and her guardian's name. She runs up the stairs, screaming her head off.

"Anne!"

"Lementa!"

The door to Anne's bedroom stood slightly ajar. "Anne? Lementa?" Voidia calls out softly, when she notices a peculiar, sticky odor wafting from the room. Voidia steps forward through the door and reels backwards from the force of her horror. Her eyes felt palpable stabs of pain and all feeling fled from her legs.

There before her, Anne lays back on the bed, the white linen bed sheets crimson under her shoulders. A big red grin gaped from under her jaw and protruding from it was a butcher knife, Anne's hand clutching the haft. Despair and panic thickens in Voidia's chest. She heaves herself from the room, the horrid fetor of blood clogs her sinuses. In the passage, Voidia collapses. An icy fire rips through her body and she convulses violently as the terror of that image stains itself forever into her soul.

She hears footsteps, felt them through the floor. Those men were coming back! Like an animal, Voidia springs upright, all senses painfully bright and abuzz with nervous energy. The voices came next, cruel laughing voices that were coarse and beastly and burbling with raucous laughter.

"You have to see this! That crazy lady! Screeched loud enough to wake the dead and spewed all this insane nonsense about how 'her soul was not going to get violated and that she will not have it imprisoned!' That crazy lady locked herself in the bedroom and slit her own throat! Hah! By the time we managed to open the door her soul had already dispersed to wherever!"

Voidia flies away from the laughter, reaching the stairwell and quietly makes her way down the squeaky stairs, and lurches out into the living room. In the hallway, she stops, paralyzed inside her nightmare. Anne's bedroom was directly above her and Voidia feels the pressure of her death weighing down upon her like a ten-ton weight. _Why? _She shakes her head fervently, tears rolling down her cheeks and making them glisten. Harsh jeers ring from upstairs and heavy footsteps thudded against the floorboards. _Why? _Voidia forces herself to take a deep breath. She presses her palms so forcibly against her eyes that her vision lit up with a radiance as bright as blood.

In the living room, the stairs groan and the footsteps come thumping down. "Killed herself with her own kitchen knife!" A thick voice marveled. "Slit her own throat that crazy woman!" Voidia trembles. They would find her now and murder her. They would take delight in her torment and when she's finally released from her living hell, she could slip into the bliss of the afterlife and see Anne, Speka, Noah, and even meet her real mother.

_No! _ She wrenches herself free of her paralysis and bolts down the hall. There is a hidden passageway behind a wall she and Lementa had discovered about four years back and would use to escape Anne whenever the guardian deemed that the girls needed to be chastised for their misbehavior. Voidia presses her hand against the oaken panels of the wall and it silently swings away, inviting her into the cool musty-smelling darkness. In the distance, Voidia can hear the footsteps draw nearer. She swallows her own tears and slips inside, closing the door behind her, and it melds seamlessly back into the wall.

Once inside, Voidia collapses to the ground, the earth soothing and rough against her cheeks, and the air musty but damp and chilly. In the earth's womb, Voidia wept, her teeth aching with the sobs that batter the cage of her locked jaw.

* * *

**That chapter… OAO Took me so long to do! Honestly… this is easily the hardest chapter I have ever written… not only ability-wise but emotionally-wise… trying to capture all those emotions and the sheer destruction is just… *Head blows up* I also think I've really pressed the T rating in this chapter… eh… no worries… This chapter is as gory as it's going to get… no other chapter in this story will top this one in terms of goriness and most likely difficulty… I'm really bad at writing destruction… I can't help but feel as if I overdid it in this chapter… it comes off as weird and choppy to me in some areas… And I couldn't keep my promise and have Elsword, Elesis, and Raven show up… Honestly… when I said that last chapter I had no clue this chapter was going to top even my last update of Yami No Tsurugi in terms of length… I'm not doing that again! /) OAO /) →|_| If anyone has any advice in writing destruction, don't hesitate to share with me, K? I would really appreciate it! :D On a happier note… thanks for all the reviews! :DDD I really enjoy the reviews and I feel like they make banging my head in frustration worth it! So… on to reviewer replies! :D**

* * *

**Majestic War- I'm glad that you loved it! :D Thank you! :,3 Most of the characters do... even Eve and Add... wait... not going to spoil it... I decided to give aAren a spine in this story... he suffers enough abuse as it is in Yami No Tsurugi... Elsword I am 99 percent sure is appearing next chapter and who knows? ... you might get a little action to next chappie! :D As for the spells... Yes... but not everyone in the story can use magic... however... I will say there are other ways a person can fight on par with Arialists and dominate magicians...**

**Jetstream Girge- And unfortunately you didn't XD I just thought that the language would be a good idea... magic in this story is incredible complex and diverse... and you'll understand more once the backstory is explained... The pacing is subject to change... in other areas it will be mildly fast but in others, mildly slow. Thanks for pointing out those mistakes, I went back and fixed them... Description... I have obsessive compulsive description order XD *Shot* Thanks for the review! :D**

**AkitaEls- Woah! Dat quote! Dat quote! OAO Hue... what's the fun of a story about the selfishness of others, the consequences of war, the value of a soul, and the world, if things are usual? It would completely undermine the overall story if everything went according to a tied-and-true plot layout with A B and C. Lementa is a majority neutral character... she does wind up picking a side though eventually... but more for her own desires than for what she believes. Even when the characters do something despicable, it's going to be balanced out by another equally despicable action on the other side... the people aren't going to play fair... As for their personalities... of course you'll see parts of them that may surprise you! :3 What's the fun in a flat character? :D**

**The-Great-Me-Sama- Thank you :D I'm glad you think this story is good! :D**

**Random people030- Yeah... Ara is Eun... Thanks for the cookie... the jobs are**

**Lementa- EM**

**Voidia- VP**

**Elsword- RS**

**Infi- IS**

**Elesis- BH**

**Rena- WS**

**Raven- VC**

**Ara/ Eun- YR**

**Aren- No job... lolol...**

**Add- Psychic Tracer (Will advance to a LP at one point)**

**Eve- CEm**

**Chung- DC**

**Hope that helped! :D**

**Arrow-chan3- Ohoho... Can't say *Troll smile* But I promise it will be awesome! :D **

**Orithia WindBell- Orithia! nice to see chu! :D *Glomps* Glad you think this story is great! :D Yeah... it will be a bit confusing at times but everything will be cleared up... I shall leave no loose ends :D My vocab... strikes again XDDD But at least you were able to understand the majority of it :D Yup! 2 Aishas! RS x EM and IS x VP! YEEEESSSS! :DDDDD As for the song lyrics... I made them up myself :3**

**Desuchi- Sushi sighting! *Glomps* How is it going? :D WOAH! REALLY?! I just chose these two names because I thought they were more feminine and elegant than simply "Void" and "Elementa". Desu-chi... you already know how to english and write beautifully! :D**

**Spirify- Longest not including AN is now over 7k... Wonder if I will ever go over 9,000 *Shot for horrible DB reference* Aren is a little more steely and impatient than normal and Ara's a little vicious but both have reason to be... Yeah... You won't be able to appreciate the good in a character unless you see the bad :3 If you want... I can get you an Oberon punching bag... XDD**

**Rinkushido- Awww... I won't tease you... at least not yet! *Evil smile* Dat vocab... dat vocab... easily what I am most known for... might as well just slap a sticker on my stories saying "College reading level" lololol... As for my pacing... yeah I know... It is slow... and it drives me nuts... but I do have a question Rinny... Are you counting the verses as well? If you are, try skipping over them... it should improve... The verses automatically slow down the combat but I deem them necessary to showing how the fundamentals of magic combat works and plus the verses give some insight into a character's personality... if not then... I'll see what I can do... No... you're not a douche bag... You most certainly don't come off as one :3**

**ROSA UNDERCOVER- Way to abuse caps lock 'Nelle-chama XD I know that's you... your review style... lolol... Aren has no clue... none at all... And it's driving him crazy XDD Add is such a fun character to make name puns out of :3 Aww... that's ok... at least you reviewed! :D Pretty spot-on about the tower... as for Aren's song... well... I will indulge you and do a little spoiler here if you want to read... **

***Spoiler***

**Aren's songs are the childhood lullabies he remembers as a kid... as a result they're very soothing and they have a calming effect, unfortunately... they're crap songs for combat...He's definitely more support/ defense-type in this story...**

**Elesis is still alive! :D I haven't watched Frozen... my mom doesn't take me to the movie theaters much... =w=;**


	4. EXEC HYMME PLUTONIUS

**EXEC FLIP ARPHAGE**

**Exec_ HYMME PLUTONIUS**

* * *

"_I die with everything that is dying."_

"_I go with them."_

_-The Kingdom of the Grail_

* * *

Lementa wasn't sure as to what force prompted her to wake up… The wind… The wind carries with it an acrid tinge of the charred fetor of smoke. Twitching spastically in her fitful sleep, Lementa gratefully cracks open her eyes and pushes herself off the ground. Inside her body, her viscera shudders as the mordant echoes of the bell's delirious tolling resound throughout her psyche.

Biting her bottom lip, the purplenette furrows her brow and glances up at the cerulean firmament arched out above her. A pulpy day moon hung in the sky. Standing up, Lementa brushes the dust off her dress and pauses among the waxy leaves of the chaliceflowers, admiring the serenity of the moon's vaporous face. Under its benign gaze, how could anything possible be wrong? The smoke… it probably came from a celebratory bonfire of some sort.

The village of Decir had its fair share of festivals. There were only four of the myriad festivals that Anne celebrated raucously, going down to the village to drink, dance, eat, laugh, and make merry. For Lementa, the revelries of Saint Noel's, Hallowed Eve, New Year's Eve, and Easter were times of feasting and much music. Even now, the lucid piping of the flutier music chimed ghost-like in Lementa's ears, like the vestige of a half-forgotten memory.

She frowns. Lementa was not privy to the affairs of the village, but she was reasonably sure that there were no fetes going on today. Voidia would've dropped a subtle hint about it, even if she didn't inform Anne because she didn't want the pious and somewhat stern former nun to stop her from going. Letting out a petulant snort, Lementa shakes her head testily and places a hand over her stomach. It growls, insisting for some food to be put into it.

"…Tch…" Lementa snorts and rolls her eyes. It was past lunch time… Surely Voidia must've come back and eaten all the food off the table before departing. _Oh, why didn't I bother packing myself a snack? _Scolding herself for her negligence, Lementa tugs on her left pigtail and casts a disparaging look at her surroundings.

"Ah… what's done is done…" Lementa mumbles sagely to herself and starts to head down the knoll. Despite the tranquility and quietude the purplenette had while taking refuge in this hidden hillock, she put her appetite above the need to steal away from the world and contemplate life's mysteries. The worst part would be the teasing Voidia would throw at her if she decided to linger. The elder twin was good-natured, but at times she could quickly wear on anyone's nerves. Even a saint would lose their temper if they had prolonged exposure to Voidia's inanity.

Pausing on a slope of cinquefoil, Lementa instantly sees that everything is wrong… so horrifically wrong. The trees were mutilated, their limbs carelessly shredded. Swaths of grass were torched to a wan grey, and the windows were shuttered close, a couple of the wooden panels dangling precariously from their fulcra.

_What… what is going on? Could it be… No! Don't even put such thoughts into the universe! What am I thinking?! It's probably some prank some asinine idiot pulled! Like that one time when a moronic village boy egged and covered the house in toilet paper! _

Hesitantly, Lementa approaches the house, her skin tingling with fear. A lump swells up in her throat and she attempts to swallow, but to no avail, her mouth was far too desiccated. A deathly silence fills the air, pierced by the rapacious screeching of vultures circling around somewhere in the distance. Now that Lementa was up close, she could see that it was no trifling prank.

_Bandits! But-_

Lementa slams a hand over her mouth to muffle the strident scream that attempts to rip itself free of her mouth. _What has happened?! Voidia?! Anne?! _ Lementa's eyes grew wide and she sprints around the house, towards the front. A sharp intake of breath is heard as Lementa freezes, surveying the battered and splintered door with dismay. "Voidia?! Anne?!" She cries out, desperately praying that her family was alright.

_If it was bandits though… why didn't the sentries stop them?! We're not in Ruben for the El Lady's sake!_

Lementa shudders as an unfelt breeze envelopes her in glacial cold. Why was there no answer? Timorously, Lementa throws a wild look over her shoulder, as if expecting a gang of bandits to sneak up behind her and do whatever they pleased. Lementa wraps her arms around herself, trying to rid herself of the paralyzing chill that lobotomized her body while making her nerves dance manically.

Pushing open the door, Lementa startles and lets out a shrill squeak as the door literally falls off its hinges, slamming into the ground with a dull _thud! _ Lementa enters the house and gapes at the devastation the invaders wrought. The opulent frescoes that hung on the wall were missing, the crystal vases that rested on the beech coffee table shattered, and the flowers that rested in them, lying forlornly on the ground. The couch was shredded and the room was bereft of anything of value. The gilt ashtray was snatched, the rosewood cupboards thrown open and stripped of their contents. Even the brocaded silk pillows with the silver stitchery were stolen!

"VOIDIA?! ANNE?!" Lementa shrieks at the top of her lungs, praying that she'd get a response. There was only silence…

Lementa clutches at her throat, stinging tears welling up in the corner of her eyes. She heads up the stairs, hoping that she would find a clue as to what befell them.

"Kuh!" The purplenette retches at the cloying odor of blood that pervaded the air. Metallic and foul, it coats her mouth with a coppery layer and fills her with dread… for it only meant that the worse could've transpired. Beads of cold sweat drip down Lementa's neck as she trudges down the hall, attempting to discern the source of the grisly stench. The door to Anne's bedroom is slightly ajar, with tremulous fingers, Lementa pushes it open.

"ANNNNNNEEEEE!" Lementa screeches and collapses to her knees, all senses fleeing her body as she beholds the macabre sight of Anne lying on the bed with a gore-slicked knife impaled in her throat, her hand clutching at the haft. "WWWWHHHHHHYYYY?!" The purplenette wails and shakes her head, the burning tears she spilt trickling down her cheeks. "A-Anne… Wh -sob- why is –sob- this hap-sob- happen-happening?" She gasps and buries her head in her hands.

_What happened to Voidia?! Is she dead… is she alive?! WHAT IS GOING ON?!_

A muffled _thump! _sound followed by the creaking of the staircase as a set of feet trotted on it caused Lementa to jump like a small frightened animal. Rigidified, the purplenette looks around the room, frantically searching for a place to hide that wasn't under the bed. _Did those thugs really have to overturn all the furniture?! _Lementa thinks in consternation as she spies the oversized oaken wardrobe lying on the ground. It would be a perfect place to hide… except it was laying doors-first on the plush sapphire carpet.

"Le-Lementa… is that you?" Voidia's voice wavers from behind the door. Lementa gasps and whips around to face the door. "Void- Voidia?! Is that you?!" Lementa parrots, a sliver of hope welling up in her chest like a silver bubble of light in the murky depths of the black sea of despair.

A feeble laugh is heard from Voidia. "Hue…you idiot… No… I'm Jiminy Cricket… Of course it's me!" Voidia retorts tartly. Despite the acrimony in the elder twin's tone, Lementa senses the wavering note of grief in Voidia's voice and she instantly forgives Voidia's facetious words. "I was so worried! I thought you were…" The rest of Lementa's sentence trails into taut silence.

"So did I…" Voidia replies weakly, hearing what was unsaid. "I'm… -hic-" -Lementa sobs- "That you're-hic- alright." Voidia manages a morbid ghost of a smile and walks into the room where her twin is standing, careful not to let herself glimpse the lifeless cadaver of their former guardian. "Oh V!" Lementa gasps and flings her arms around the elder twin, sweeping her into a spine-crushing hug. Voidia balks and pushes herself away from Lementa. "Easy… that hurts." She mumbles, pursing her lips into a peeved line.

"So…sorry.." Lementa mutters and casts a look down at her feet. "Now what do we do…? We don't have Anne anymore… should we go down to the village-"

Voidia cuts Lementa off, her tone sharp and brittle. "We can't!" Lementa gapes incredulously at Voidia. "Why…?" The sheer enormity of what really happened dawns on Lementa and the purplenette clasps both hands over her mouth to prevent her from releasing a despairing scream. "…!" Voidia bites her bottom lip and flings a glance at the door behind her. "I suppose we should grab our stuff and leave…"

"If we have any…" Lementa states, her voice whispery, just a mere breath really, and wavering with disbelief, desolation, and anxiety. "Hmm… What do you mean Le?" Voidia queries curiously, cocking her head to the side. Lementa bites the inside of her cheek and crosses her arms. "When I came in… I saw that everything of value in all the rooms I checked were either stolen or destroyed…" Voidia hisses cantankerously and bares her teeth. "Lousy assholes… I swear if I see any of them again- especially that man who murdered Speka and Noah I will kill them! I will kill them! I will kill them! I will-"

"Voidia!" Lementa yelps, frightened by the malignant vehemence in her sister's voice. Voidia's eyes widen and she glimpses at her sister like a startled small animal. "Huh?" She replies dumbly and cocks a dubious eyebrow at Lementa. "Don't- Don't do that!" Lementa gaps and places a hand over her heart. "Do what?" Voidia inquires innocuously. "Say that sort of stuff!" Lementa retorts, her voice high-pitched and frantic. The left corner of Voidia's lip twists upward in a dark smirk and she narrows her eyes. "It's true… I will do it at the first opportunity." Lementa shudders at the darkness in Voidia, in the back of her mind she could hear rancorous insults being hurled as hissing whispers.

_Traitor! How could you do this to me?!_

_How could you be so selfish?! Can't you see what you're doing is wrong?! Are you so narrow-minded you would destroy peace for your own petty satisfaction?! _

_Why you-!_

"-Ta… LEMENTA!" Voidia bellows. Lementa recoils as a jolt of energy throws her back to reality. "Huh?!" Voidia regards her younger sister curiously. "Oh… So now you're taking my job as the spacey one? Hue… I see how it is…" A desolate sigh escapes Voidia and she frowns worriedly. "Uh- I-It's no-nothing! What were you saying!?" Lementa stammers and bites her tongue. Voidia exhales loudly and tugs on her disheveled pigtails. "…I'm going to go search for some matches and you should check our rooms to see if we have any clothes or anything that could be useful to us." Lementa's mouth opened into a perfect "o" of confusion. "Eh?! What…?"

Voidia face palms herself and scans the room, catching glimpse of Anne's body, she hastily averts her gaze. "We're leaving for Ruben which is only about a three day's walk from here. That's why I need you to salvage our clothes if we have any… I'm going to burn down this house… no sense leaving it here…" Lementa gawks at Voidia, thinking her elder twin very much insane. Who wouldn't be at this point? Why even Lementa herself was reduced from a self-possessed and responsible young woman to a sniveling little child who had to rely on her rash twin to pull things together.

"Don't look at me like that! I know Ruben is a dump but what are we supposed to do?! Stay here and die?!" –A livid scowl writes itself on Voidia- "Then what was the purpose of us surviving?!" Lementa is silent. Everything they had was destroyed. The promised positions as a scholar's apprentice for Lementa and a jewelry designer's interne for Voidia, gone, reduced to nothing but a tristful dream of what could have been. Voidia's friend? Dead. Anne- the mother they never had? Committed suicide. Voidia herself? She was probably never going to be the same.

The weight of it all settles in on Lementa and it suffocates her. The room spins and her breath catches in her lungs. She had nothing left of her old life… everything was gone… and now it was up to her to piece it back into a reasonable facsimile of what the world was before this tragedy. "Lementa! Are you listening to me?!" Voidia snaps, her mouth set into a hard line. Lementa swallows and nods feebly. "Yes… I got it…" Voidia sighs and trudges to the door.

"Let's go…" –her voice is thin and pathetic- "I… don't want to stay here any longer…" Voidia exits the room and Lementa follows after her, feeling as if she would choke to death on her tears and the stench of blood alone.

* * *

The girl's room was a disaster. Everything was overturned, smashed, or snatched up by the acquisitive thieves. The floral carpet was crusted over with a mixture of blood and grime and the door to the walk-in closet was no more than a dozen or so oversized splinters clinging to each other by a thread. The abalone combs studded with semi-precious stones was missing and all the garments made of valuable material such silk, and luxuriously dyed velvet were stolen.

Mercy is truly an abstract concept.

Sifting through the jumbled heap, Lementa is able to salvage a couple pairs of pants, a few skirts, some shirts, and two jackets. "... Nothing matches…" She gripes, but she stuffs it into the decrepit leather suitcase she managed to find.

_Voidia is going to be jumping down my throat as it is for all the time I took! I have no right to whine about mismatched clothing! _

With an infuriated sigh, Lementa immaculately folds the last garment and tucks it into the suitcase, slamming the lid down and clasps the clip shut.

* * *

The moment Lementa steps foot outside, she is accosted by a piqued Voidia. "What took you so long?! Did you forget where our bedroom was for the El Lady's sake?!" The elder purplenette snaps, crossing her arms. "Excuse me! Our room was a disaster! Did you know how long it took me to find anything at all?!" Lementa retorts dourly and slams the suitcase into the ground. Voidia huffs indignantly and holds up a weathered matchbox. "I suppose you had to fold everything as well?" The elder purplenette enquires rhetorically and pulls out a match. Lementa snorts and shakes her head fervently. "Even so! That is none of your business! I found the clothes! Stop biting my head off for crying out loud!" She exclaims, her voice a razor edge.

"Tch.." Voidia strikes the side of the matchbox with the match and the dull red match head flares brilliantly in a shower of sparks. She holds it up, hesitating for a moment, admiring the slender wavering flame that shudders in the desolate breeze. Lementa bites her bottom lip and sways absentmindedly. "Are you sure V?" She questions softly. Voidia casts a black look at Lementa and nods silently.

"Yes."

Voidia throws the match at the splintered door, the flame clings on to the wood and fans outwards, voraciously consuming the entire frame of the house and swathing it in a hellish radiance. Sparks dance around in the breeze, swirling around the billowing plumes of charcoal smoke like the departing spirits of the dead rising up from hades, glowing with the heated rage of innocent people who had their lives stolen far too early from them.

Lementa flinches as the house crackles malignly, mocking her and her twin about what they lost; however Voidia stares stoically at the fiery wraith, her face an impassive mask. Though she did not speak, Lementa knows that Voidia is seeing the faces of all the dead in the writhing flames.

"…" Soundlessly, Voidia turns her back and motions for her younger twin. "Come on, let's go." The younger purplenette's eyes widen, but she hastily dips her head and scampers to where Voidia is standing. "What are we going to do once we reach Ruben?" Lementa inquires, appearing rather wan and anemic, her breathing shallow as the smoky odor of the fire clamps itself around her throat.

Voidia sighs forlornly and rubs her forehead. "Anne had a friend in Ruben named Hagus. If I'm not mistaken he runs a rather prosperous little inn and I'm sure he'll help us out once we tell him the whole story." She grimaces, a mordant gleam of dark satire illuminating her violaceous irises. "I hope." She adds after a brief moment's pause.

The corners of Lementa's lips twitch upwards. "Of course he will… No one is that heartless." Lementa's reassurance was rebuked by a scalding glare from Voidia. "Don't lie to yourself Lementa. If there were people heartless enough to do this-" she gesticulates wildly around her- "Then there are people heartless enough to refuse to lend aid to us." Lementa cringes at the acidity of both Voidia's remark and her tone. "I meant most people!" She rebukes, a nettling edge creeping its way into her words.

Voidia's lips ripple in a fleeting smile devoid of mirth. "Let's hope he's like most people."

* * *

The road to Ruben was a narrow, meandering path of gravel- more of a wide path carved out by game hunters than an actual trade route. Traveling alongside the path, the girls endure the sharp pinprick stabs of the thorn bushes and the constant biting of the night winds. With each step the girls took, the leaves rustle, whispering their secrets to each other, weaving the lachrymal lyrics to the mournful hymns the deceased sung.

The moon jeers at Lementa as she stares up at it, shaped like the graceful curve of a sleeping swan, it watches over the girls, chuckling morbidly, belying its tranquil appearance. Lying on her back, on the moist grass, glistening with evening dew, Lementa contemplates it balefully, her mouth twisted in a disgusted scowl. "You betrayed me." She mutters dourly under her breath.

"Huh…?" Voidia mumbles sleepily, rolling over on her side to look at Lementa. Lementa snorts, blowing her bangs out of her eyes. "The moon." She replies taciturnly. Voidia cocks an incredulous eyebrow, staring at the pallid figure of her younger twin, glowing platinum in the moonlight.

An owl hoots dolefully.

"The moon betrayed me." Lementa exclaims acridly, grateful that the nocturnal shadows casted by the moonlight covered her facial expression. No doubt Voidia would find her getting upset over such a fatuous little thing childish, Lementa herself was vexed at how petty she had become on the road in just the span of two days. She hated not having a toilet, or a bath, or food, and she hated the cold. She hated how she shrieked whenever a small forest animal, such as a black squirrel darted out in front of her, skittering across her path. She hated how Voidia would chide her for those startled outbursts, and she hated how helpless she was.

She was used to being the more mature and level-headed one, helping her unruly older sister out with her ciphers and verses when they were younger, and keeping the house in order. Now they were out in the open with nothing, their life devastated and her brains and domestic skills had no use. Badly shaken up as she was, Lementa was frightened at how dependent she had become on Voidia.

Perhaps the thing that Lementa hated most of all was how Voidia changed so drastically. In all the stories that Lementa had read before, she dismissed such shocking and abrupt changes in personality as unrealistic and "forced". Now, it felt as if to Lementa that she was trapped inside of a story with some particularly sadistic author using Voidia as a scapegoat for particularly gruesome developments to spare her, the tragic heroine while still lacerating her heart into a thousand fragments that were unable to be pieced back together.

Gone was the witty, lightly mocking, and irresponsible person with a droll retort that Lementa knew and cherished so well. In her place was a dark, jaded, and mature being with a dangerous edge to every action and word. That person who had replaced her beloved twin Voidia, terrified Lementa.

"Oh the moon betrayed you? Hue… Hard for a floating hunk of inanimate space rock hovering like a million miles above us to betray you." Voidia retorts drily and rolls her eyes. Lementa huffs petulantly and rolls over, so she couldn't see Voidia. "…Tsk… Of course you would say that…" She mutters under her breath.

Voidia deadpans, hearing the words despite how soft and jumbled they were. "I know… It's hard… I can see what you're thinking… it's easy to blame an inanimate rock than it is to think that there are people that beastly out there. However… We need to face reality and we can't do that together if you keep blaming the moon for all your woes. Tomorrow we should reach Ruben and then we can start a new life from the fragments of our old one."

Lementa sighs, her breath carried away by the chill air. "You're missed the point entirely…" She mutters softly and furrows her brow.

* * *

**That concludes a short quick update for EFA! I'm sorry if it was short and boring, but I don't feel like doing a super-long chapter and I'm being lazy and I feel like I have to update… I've been slacking off long enough… Once again… my expectations exceeded reality. XD Next chapter the girls wind up in Ruben and Elsword, Elesis, and Raven show up on stage! Took me four chapters, but that's about my average XD I move sooo slow. I'm going to be starting up an Arthurian Elsword story and then visiting YnT again! But, sorry for long wait… Been so very, very lazy O3O And sorry for short chapter. At least it was over 3.5k words… Even if nothing happened in this chapter, I think it was good in terms of character interactions and feelings. It's important to have chapters for characterizations and though I know it's a slog, I feel it's necessary to fully flesh out a story plus it makes the action and the big reveals all the more satisfying! **

**Anyhoo… Thanks people that reviewed! I appreciate the reviews! :D Time to give you the replies you deserve! :DD**

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**The-Great-Me-Sama- I won't abandon this! i know I'm a bit sketchy but I won't ditch this! May Noah and Speka rest in peace... Here is an update... Though it's not soon by any stretch of the imagination. **

**Rosamanelle- Tell your friend I have no clue... I guess it's natural? O3O Chung is an enigma... But I think ch2 hinted as to who he was. Chung is OP... Both Speka and Noah down with a head-shot... *Shot* Dat poor caps-lock button... How long will you abuse it? lololol. Anne is crazy, but she was no thief... She was a former nun... Their house is just old O3O As for Eve... she don't care... She will do what she wants... which is to be Eve XDD I'm not going to spoil what happens To Voidia... Though I will say it will take a little more than just her friends and her guardian being killed before she goes cray-cray X3**

**Majestic War- I'm glad you found it amazing! =w=; I think I overdid it but I'm glad that you enjoyed it nonetheless. A collab?! sounds interesting... Though I will warn you, I am horrible at updating XD**

**AkitaEls- I see a wall of text again... JK... I'm glad for the long review... Shows you care for the story. But thanks for confirming for me my suspicions that I overdid it, nice to see some constructive criticism. I'll keep it in mind for next time. I actually picture VP as being a bit brash, maybe reckless, and dark, but she really does care because she took those risks. As for EM... I picture her as more naturally mature but she acts like that to cover up her own insecurities and she does have her weak moments, she's still level-headed and a lot less likely to bottle-up her feelings in a "tough girl" act in comparison to VP who is afraid of weakness... but as you can guess... Bottling everything up will become a VERY bad habit of VP... it has to go somewhere eventually. Voidia is going to be ok for now but eventually she's going to tip over the edge. Hue... I know I scare people off, I even had some confessions that my length and description can be deterring, but in a way it's a good thing. It detracts people who just want an easy ride and don't pay attention so I don't get stuck with people asking me redundant questions or something like that, it also shows the reader EXACTLY what I'm picturing which is good in my opinion. Another thing is that there's already so many talented authors out on the Elsword Archives that I have to stand out in some way and attract a loyal audience who like what ONLY I can provide, and not drifters who just jump on to whatever is BIG. **

**There's plenty of BIG stories in the Elsword Archives but VERY VERY few have any elegance or poise to them, or even depth that isn't cliche or formulaic. It seems like to me, with the demise of "The Breathless World" The Elsword archives have sort of lost out on stories with maturity, detail, and character reactions and actions that resound throughout the story. We've lost stories were every action has a consequence and it's not in the place of a High School (don't get me wrong, I love some of the school stories that are a teeny bit cliche such as I Hate You, I Love You, but really... do we need a knock-off of that one gem to be every other story?) In short... we lost stories that are unique and individualistic (Stares at Gunpowder Perfume, Innocent Sin: Damnation Boy and Atonement girl, Conquer Thy Life, On Our Velder, The Messenger, Deadly Cinderella, Journey of a Thousand Fathoms). And now it saddens me that a lot of people just gobble up whatever high school EM x (Insert random Elboy here) story there is. Ok, I'll fess up... I did a High School story as well, but it was my first story and I was insecure... You can clearly see through my early writing I had no confidence and I kind of shirked towards a more generic model of writing. **

**I just want to be different because I'm hoping to inspire the old days of the Elsword Archives where we had zombie apocalypses, corporate CEOs, knights and castles, marriages, time traveling, epic and dark fantasies about revenge and magic and redemption, stories with sophistication and detail and clever moments. I want to create a FF writing renaissance in the Elsword Archives and create readers who crave something more than easy-to-read fluff, but I can't do that very well if my stories are... Easy to read fluff, can I? Even if I can't change the Elsword Archives in a direction where there's more diversity I at least want t stick around to provide readers with something different... plus it's a good boredom killer XD **

**And now I'm going to stop rambling... If you don't feel like killing me after this rambling... Here's a cookie *Hands you a cookie***


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